HE 

y 
o  f 


TRANSLATION 

UC-NRLF 


OF  THE 


LAW  OF    RAILROADS 


FOR  TFTE 


ISLAND   OF  CUBA, 


AND 


EEGULATIONS   FOR   ITS   EXECUTION, 


WITH   ADDITIONS   TO   DATE. 


(1895. 


DIVISION  OF  CUSTOMS  AND  INSULAR  AFFAIRS, 

WAR  DEPARTMENT, 
JULY,  1899, 


WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT    PRINTING    OFFICE. 
1899. 


GIFT  OF 
.  C  .C  . 


* 
Vg  f^-~  i£&  ^ 

TRANSLATION 


OF  THE 


LAW  OF  EAILROADS 


FOR  THE 


ISLAND   OF  CUBA. 


AND 


REGULATIONS   FOR   ITS   EXECUTION, 


WITH   ADDITIONS   TO   DATE. 


(1895.) 


DIVISION  OF  CUSTOMS  AND  INSULAR  AFFAIRS, 
"WAR 


WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT    PRINTING    OFFICE. 
1899. 


GENERAL  GOVERNMENT  OF  THE  ISLAND  OF  CUBA, 

Secretary's  Office. 

The  Colonial  Department,  under  date  of  September  27  last,  and  under 
No.  1678,  communicates  to  His  Excellency  the  Governor- General,  the 
following  Eoyal  Order : 

YOUK  EXCELLENCY  :  In  view  of  the  necessity  to  clearly  establish  the  legislation 
in  force  in  tliat  Island  with  regard  to  Railroads  in  order  to  avoid  the  doubts  which 
appear  in  the  questions  submitted  by  the  General  Inspection  of  Public  Works,  and 
which  also  appear  in  the  proceedings  which  take  place  in  that  Island  with  relation 
to  concessions  of  this  class  of  roads  of  communication; 

Whereas,  after  the  Budget  Law  of  June  5,  1880,  was  promulgated,  there  were 
declared  as  preferred  lines  those  mentioned  therein,  the  concession  of  which  the 
Government  was  authorized  to  grant,  declaring  the  two  General  Laws  of  November 
23, 1877,  and  their  corresponding  Regulations,  applicable  in  so  far  as  they  do  not  con- 
flict with  the  prescriptions  of  the  said  law; 

Whereas  the  law  of  November  23,  1877,  prescribed  all  the  rules  necessary  for  the 
concessions  to  construct  Railroads  of  general  interest  and  those  of  private  use  and 
tramways,  and  which  in  its  article  80  establishes  that  the  laws,  decrees,  and  other 
provisions  issued  prior  thereto  which  conflict  with  the  same  are  repealed; 

Whereas  the  Decree-law  of  November  14,  1868,  on  new  general  bases  for  the  legis- 
lation on  Public  Works  has  been  repealed  in  so  far  as  it  refers  to  Railroads,  from 
the  time  the  special  Railroad  Law  was  promulgated  and  declared  applicable  to  the 
one  of  that  Island; 

Whereas  for  the  proper  application  of  the  said  Railroad  Law  and  the  Regulations 
for  its  observance  it  is  necessary  to  make  in  its  text  those  alterations  necessary  to 
apply  the  same  to  the  administrative  organization  of  that  province,  this  should  not 
be  an  obstacle  for  the  immediate  application  of  its  prescriptions  as  ordered  by  the 
law  of  June  5, 1880,  consulting  any  doubts  which  may  arise  in  so  doing; 

His  Majesty  the  King  (whom  God  preserve)  has  deemed  it  proper  to  state  to  Your 
Excellency  that  the  legislation  in  force  for  the  concession,  construction,  and  opera- 
tion of  Railroads  of  that  Island  is  that  which  was  expressly  ordered  to  be  observed 
by  article  27  of  the  Budget  Law  of  June  5, 1880,  or  contained  in  the  General  Laws  of 
November  23, 1877,  and  their  corresponding  Regulations,  in  so  far  as  they  do  not  con- 
flict with  the  prescriptions  established  by  said  law,  said  legislation  having  repealed 
all  prior  measures  issued  in  conflict  with  the  same.  This  I  communicate  to  Your 
Excellency  by  Royal  Order  for  your  information  and  consequent  effects. 

And  His  Excellency  having  ordered  its  compliance  under  date  of 
October  18,  last,  it  is  published  in  the  Gaceta,  for  general  information. 
Habaiia,  November  24, 1882. 

M.  DIAZ  DE  LA  QUINTANA, 

•    Secretary  of  the  General  Government. 
(Gaceta  of  December  3.) 

3 

f\  O  -4    A  f\  O 


WORKS. 

The  General  Law  of  Kailroads,  and  the  Law  for  the  police  of  the 
same,  of  November  23,  1877,  and  the  Regulations  for  its  application  of 
May  24,  1878,  now  in  force  in  the  Peninsula,  having  been  extended  to 
this  Island,  I  have  ordered  their  publication  in  the  Gaceta,  for  general 
information. 

M.  DIAZ  DE  LA  QUINTANA, 
Secretary  of  the  General  Government. 
Habana,  January  5,  1883. 


LAWS. 

Don  Alfonso  XII,  by  the  Grace  of  God,  Constitutional  King  of  Spain : 
Know  all  ye  who  see  and  understand  these  presents:  That  in  accord- 
ance with  the  bases  approved  by  the  Cortes  which  were  promulgated 
as  a  law  on  December  29, 1876,  making  use  of  the  authorization  granted 
by  the  same  law  to  my  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  hearing  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  Navy  in  the  matters  of  his  special  competence,  and  hearing 
also  the  full  Council  of  State  and  the  Consulting  Board  of  Roads, 
Canals,  and  Ports,  and  in  conformity  with  my  Council  of  Secretaries, 
I  have  decreed  and  sanctioned  the  following  law : 

CHAPTER  I. 

CLASSIFICATION   OF   RAILROADS. 

ARTICLE  1.  This  law  refers  to  all  railroads,  whatever  be  the  system 
of  traction  employed. 

ART.  2.  Eailroads  are  divided  into  lines  of  general  service  and  of 
private  service. 

ART.  3.  Eailroads  of  general  service  are  those  devoted  to  public 
operation  for  transportation  of  passengers  and  traffic  of  merchandise; 
those  of  private  service  are  devoted  to  the  exclusive  operation  of  a 
given  industry  or  to  private  use. 

ART.  4.  The  lines  constructed  and  those  included  in  the  law  of  July 
2, 1870,  their  branch  and  special  lines,  form  the  general  plan  of  rail- 
roads for  the  purposes  of  this  law,  all  of  which  are  mentioned  here,  as 
follows : 

Northern  System. — Madrid  to  Valladolid,  Valladolid  to  Burgos,  Bur- 
gos to  Irun,  San  Isidro  de  Dueiias  (Venta  de  Bauos)  to  Alar  del  Eey, 
Alar  del  Eey  to  Santander,  Quintanilla  de  las  Torres  to  Orbo,  Madrid 
to  Valladolid  by  Segovia.  From  the  line  from  Madrid  to  Valladolid  to 
Segovia.  Medina  del  Campo  to  Zamora.  Medina  del  Campo  to  Sala- 
manca, Tudela  (Castejon)  to  Bilbao.  Minas  de  Triano  to  the  Eia  de 
Bilbao. 

Northeastern  system  and  its  junction  with  the  Northern. — Madrid  to 
Zaragoza.  Zaragoza  to  Alsasua.  Zaragoza  to  Barcelona.  Barcelona 
to  Grauollers.  Granollers  to  Eambla  de  Sta.  Coloma  de  Fames.  Bar- 
celona to  Mataro.  Mataro  to  Arenys  de  Mar.  Arenys  de  Mar  to  Eam- 
bla de  Sta.  Coloma.  Eambla  de  Sta.  Coloma  to  Gerona.  Gerona  to 
Figueras.  Figueras  to  the  frontier  of  France.  To  France  by  the  Cen- 

5 


tral  Pyrenees,  (Tai-chenta  tu;IIitesca.  Tarragona  to  Martorell.  Mar- 
torell  to  Barcelona.  Lerida  to  Montblanch.  Montblancli  to  Reus. 
Reus  to  Tarragona.  Barcelona  to  Sarria.  Selgua  to  Barbastro. 
Granollers  to  San  Juan  de  las  Abadesas.  Mollet  to  Caldas  de  Mont- 
buy.  Manresa  to  Guardiola  by  Berga.  Minas  de  Montsech  to  the 
French  frontier  by  the  Valley  of  Aran.  Alcocer  to  Vails.  Vails  by 
Villanueva  y  Geltru  to  Barcelona.  Lerida  to  Pueute  del  Rey.  Zara- 
goza  to  Escatron.  Val  de  Zafan  to  Gargallo.  Val  de  Zafan  to  Alcaniz, 
Reus,  and  Tarragona.  Val  de  Zafan  to  Utrillas  by  Gargallo  and 
Andorra.  Utrillas  to  la  Zaida.  Valladolid  to  Galatayud.  Segovia  to 
the  line  from  Valladolid  to  Calatayud.  Baides  to  Soria  and  Castejon. 

Eastern  system  and  its  junction  with  the  Northeastern. — Madrid  to 
Almansa.  Almansa  to  Alicante.  Almausa  to  Jativa.  Albacete  to 
Cartagena.  Castillejo  to  Toledo.  Aranjuez  or  Madrid  to  Cuenca. 
Alcazar  de  San  Juan  to  Quintanar  de  la  Orden.  Jativa  to  Grao  de 
Valencia.  Valencia  to  Tarragona.  Cargagente  to  Gandia  and  Gandia 
to  Denia  (animal  traction).  Cuenca  to  Henarejos.  Cuenca  to  Valencia 
by  Landete,  and  from  this  point  to  Teruel.  Teruel  to  Gargallo  by  the 
River  Alfambra  and  Utrillas.  Teruel  to  Sagunto.  Calatayud  to 
Teruel  and  Lugo  to  Utrillas.  Alicante  to  Murcia  and  its  branches  to 
No  veld  a  and  Torrevieja. 

Southern  system  and  its  junction  with  the  Eastern. — Madrid  to  Ciudad- 
Real  (direct  line).  Alcazar  de  San  Juan  to  Ciudad-Real.  Manzanares 
to  Cordoba.  Cordoba  to  Sevilla.  Sevilla  to  Jerez.  Jerez  to  Trocadero. 
Puerto  Real  to  Cadiz.  Cordoba  to  Malaga.  Cordoba  to  Belmez. 
Utrera  to  Moron.  Utrera  (junction)  to  Osuna.  Campillos  (Bobadilla) 
to  Granada.  Tharsis  to  Odiel  River.  Buitron  to  the  river  of  San 
Juan  del  Puerto.  Buitron  to  the  line  of  Merida  to  Sevilla.  Sevilla  to 
Huelva.  Tharsis  by  Paimogo  to  the  line  of  Beja.  Mengibar  to  Jae"n 
and  Granada.  Linares  to  Almeria.  Murcia  to  Granada  by  Lorca. 
Vadollano  to  Linares  and  los  Salidos.  Osuua  by  Casariche.  Jerez  de 
la  Frontera  to  Bonanza  by  Saulucar.  Cadiz  to  Campameuto.  Campa- 
mento  to  Malaga.  Puente  Genii  to  Linares.  Zafra  to  Huelva. 

Eastern  system  and  its  junction  with  the  Southern  and  the  Northern. — 
Ciudad-Real  to  Badajoz.  Medellin  to  Miajadas.  Belmez  to  Castillo  de 
Almorchon.  Madrid  to  Malpartida  de  Plasencia.  Malpartida  de  Pla- 
sencia  to  Monfortinho.  Talavera  to  Almorchon.  Me"rida  to  Sevilla. 
Merida  to  Malpartida  de  Plasencia  by  Caceres.  Malpartida  de  Plasen- 
cia to  Salamanca.  Caceres  to  the  frontier  of  Portugal.  Salamanca  to 
the  frontier  of  Portugal. 

Northwestern  system  and  its  junction  icith  the  Northern. — Paleucia  to 
Ponferrada.  Ponferrada  to  Coruna.  Monforte  to  Orense.  Orense  to 
Vigo.  Lugo  to  Rivadeo.  Ferrol  to  Betanzos.  Santiago  to  the  port  of 
Carril.  Redondela  to  Marin  by  Pontevedra.  Leon  to  Gijon.  Sama  de 
Langreo  to  Gijon.  Sabero  to  El  Burgo.  Oviedo  to  Pravia  by  Trubia. 
Villabona  to  San  Juan  de  Meva.  Zamora  to  Astorga  by  Benavente. 


Balearic  Islands. — Palma  to  Alcudia  and  Santa  Maria  or  Manacor. 
Branches  to  coal  mines  or  mining  districts  and  importing  industrial 
centers. 

ART.  5.  All  the  lines  included  in  the  plan  adopted  by  the  previous 
article,  and  also  those  which  may  be  included  in  the  future  in  said  plan 
are  lines  of  general  service.  Lines  devoted  to  the  operation  of  coal 
veins  and  mines  of  importance  may  also  be  included  in  those  of  general 
service,  when  so  classified. 

ART.  6.  The  plan  of  railroads  can  not  be  changed  or  modified  except 
by  virtue  of  a  law. 

ART.  7.  All  the  railroad  lines  of  general  service  are  of  public  owner- 
ship, and  shall  be  considered  as  works  of  public  utility,  which  are  enti- 
tled to  the  right  of  eminent  domain. 

ART.  8.  The  declaration  that  a  railroad  devoted  to  the  operation  of 
a  coal  vein  or  of  mines  of  importance  is  of  general  service  shall  be  made 
by  a  law.  In  order  to  obtain  said  declaration,  a  report  of  experts  as  to 
the  importance  ot  the  mines  shall  in  all  cases  be  necessary.  The  report 
shall  be  made  by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  after  hearing  the 
Superior  Consulting  Board  of  Mines. 

CHAPTER  II. 

CONCESSION    AND     AUTHORIZATION    TO    CONSTRUCT    RAILROADS    OF 

GENERAL   SERVICE. 

ART.  9.  The  construction  of  lines  of  general  service  may  be  under- 
taken by  the  Government,  by  companies,  or  by  individuals. 

ART.  10.  In  order  that  the  Government  may  undertake  the  construc- 
tion of  a  line  with  national  funds,  or  with  the  aid  of  the  provinces  or 
towns,  it  is  necessary  that  the  line  be  included  in  the  plan,  and,  besides, 
its  immediate  execution  must  be  authorized  by  a  special  law. 

ART.  11.  When  a  line  of  general  service  is  to  be  constructed  by  indi- 
viduals or  companies,  the  concession  must  always  be  preceded  by  a  law 
fixing  the  conditions  under  which  the  concession  is  to  be  granted. 

ART.  12.  The  construction  of  lines  of  general  service  may  be  aided 
with  public  funds : 

1.  By  carrying  on  certain  works. 

2.  By  delivering  to  the  companies  at  stated  periods  a  part  of  the 
capital  invested. 

3.  By  allowing  the  use  of  works  constructed  for  public  use  compatible 
with  the  use  of  the  railroads. 

4.  By  granting  exemption  from  customs  duties  upon  the  material  of 
construction  and  operation  of  the  railroads,  complying  strictly  with 
the  provisions  of  the  laws  of  the  Budget  or  any  others  in  force. 

ART.  13.  The  provinces  and  towns  directly  interested  in  the  con- 
struction of  a  line  of  general  service  shall  contribute  with  the  State  to 


8 

the  subsidy  granted  in  the  proportion  and  manner  prescribed  by  the 
law  referred  to  in  Article  11. 

ART.  14.  The  aid  which  is  to  be  given  the  constructing  companies, 
once  determined  by  the  Laws  of  Concession,  the  concession  shall  be 
offered  at  public  auction,  under  the  terms  fixed,  for  three  months,  and 
shall  be  awarded  to  the  highest  bidder,  with  the  obligation  to  pay  to 
the  proper  party  the  cost  of  the  plans  of  the  project,  which  may  have 
served  as  a  basis  for  the  concession;  the  said  cost  shall  be  fixed  before 
making  the  public  sale  in  the  cases  and  in  the  form  determined  by  the 
Eegulations. 

ART.  15.  In  order  to  be  able  to  bid  at  the  auctions,  it  must  be  shown 
that  1  per  cent  of  the  total  value  of  the  railroad,  according  to  the 
approved  estimate,  has  been  deposited  as  a  guaranty  of  the  proposals 
which  are  submitted. 

ART.  16.  In  no  case  shall  the  concession  titles  to  lines  of  general 
service  be  issued  until  the  holder  of  the  concession  shows  that  he  has 
deposited,  as  a  guaranty  of  his  obligations,  o  per  cent  of  the  amount  of 
the  estimate  if  the  concession  has  a  subsidy  >  and  3  per  cent  if  there  be 
none. 

If  the  holder  of  the  concession  allows  fifteen  days  to  pass  without 
making  the  deposit,  the  award  shall  be  declared  null,  with  the  forfei- 
ture of  the  bond  given,  and  the  concession  of  the  line  shall  be  again 
offered  at  auction  within  the  period  of  forty  days. 

ART.  17.  The  companies  holding  concessions  of  lines  enjoying  sub- 
sidies can  not  dispose  of  the  amounts  deposited  as  a  guaranty  of  the 
construction  of  the  railroad,  until  they  have  totally  finished  the  works 
which  are  the  objects  of  the  concession.  In  case  the  line  has  no  sub- 
sidy, the  guaranty  may  be  returned  when  it  is  proven  that  there  are 
works  finished  equivalent  to  a  third  of  the  cost  of  the  works  included 
in  the  concession.  The  said  completed  works  shall  remain  as  a  guar- 
anty for  the  fulfillment  of  the  conditions  stipulated. 

ART.  18.  The  project  which  may  have 'served  as  a  basis  for  the  con- 
cession of  a  line  can  not  be  changed  in  any  manner  whatsoever  by  the 
holder  of  the  concession,  without  first  obtaining  the  proper  authori- 
zation from  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  granted  with  the  requisites 
prescribed  by  the  Eegulations  of  the  present  Law. 

ART.  19.  When,  as  a  consequence  of  the  changes  referred  to  in  the 
preceding  article,  the  cost  of  the  work  is  diminished,  the  direct  subsidy 
shall  be  diminished  in  proportion  to  such  diminution ;  if  the  changes  or 
modifications  increase  the  cost  of  the  work,  even  when  these  changes 
perfect  the  same,  and  advantages  accrue  by  its  use,  the  subsidy  granted 
by  the  Law  of  Concession  shall  never  be  increased  thereby. 

ART.  20.  When  the  work  is  completed  and  the  operation  of  the  line 
belongs  to  the  owner  of  the  concession,  the  State  shall  reserve  to  itself 
the  supervision  thereof,  through  its  expert  agents,  so  that  the  opera- 
tion of  the  line  may  be  conducted  according  to  the  conditions  stipulated. 


9 

ART.  21.  The  concessionuaire  may,  after  proper  authorization  from 
the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  transfer  his  rights,  and  the  peison 
acquiring  them  shall  remain  obligated  under  the  same  conditions  and 
with  the  same  guaranties  to  the  fulfillment  of  the  stipulated  conditions. 

ART.  22.  The  concessions  of  lines  of  general  service  shall  be  granted, 
at  the  most,  for  ninety-nine  years. 

ART.  23.  At  the  expiration  of  the  period  of  the  concession  the  State 
shall  acquire  the  granted  line  with  all  its  dependencies,  and  shall  fully 
enjoy  the  right  of  operation. 

ART.  24.  No  railroad  concession  shall  create  a  monopoly  in  favor  of 
companies,  or  individuals,  and  no  other  subsequent  concessions  for 
roads,  canals,  railroads,  works  of  navigation,  or  others,  in  the  same 
district  where  the  railroad  is  situated,  or  in  another  adjoining  it  or 
distant  therefrom,  shall  serve  as  a  basis  for  claiming  any  indemnity 
whatsoever  in  favor  of  any  of  the  owners  of  the  concessions. 

CHAPTER  III. 

FORMALITIES    WITH    WHICH     THE    AUTHORIZATION    OR    CONCESSION 
SHALL   BE   REQUESTED. 

ART.  25.  When  the  Government  shall  deem  it  proper  to  construct 
with  public  funds  one  of  the  railroad  lines  included  in  the  plan,  it  shall 
submit  to  the  Cortes,  together  with  the  form  of  authorization,  the  fol- 
lowing documents: 

1.  A  memorial  descriptive  of  the  plan. 

2.  A  general  plan  and  longitudinal  profile. 

3.  An  estimate  of  the  cost  of  construction  and  the  annual  cost  of 
repairs  and  maintenance  of  the  work. 

4.  An  estimate  of  the  material  necessary  for  the  operation  and  the 
annual  cost  of  its  repair  and  maintenance. 

5.  A  schedule  of  the  highest  rates  to  be  demanded  for  fares  and 
transportation. 

6.  Such  other  conditions  as  may  be  deemed  proper. 

ART.  26.  Individuals  and  companies  who  may  desire  the  concession 
of  a  railroad  line  declared  to  be  of  general  service,  shall  address  their 
petition  to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  and  must  present  with  it 
the  documents  constituting  the  plan,  and  must  also  show  that  there  has 
been  deposited  as  a  guaranty  of  the  plan  1  per  cent  of  the  total  cost  of 
the  works  and  the  material  for  the  operation  of  the  line,  according  to 
the  estimates. 

ART.  27.  The  plan  being  approved  and  the  conditions  of  the  con- 
cessions being  mutually  accepted,  the  Government  shall  present  to 
the  Cortes  the  proper  form  of  Law,  with  the  document  mentioned  in 
Article  25. 

ART.  28.  When  individuals  or  companies  desire  a  declaration  that 
the  railroad  line  they  propose  to  construct  is  of  public  service,  they  shall 


10 

address  their  petition  to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  together  with 
a  memorial  and  a  general  plan  and  profile  of  the  line.  The  said  Sec- 
retary shall  then  give  a  hearing,  at  which  the  Provincial  Deputations 
and  the  Municipal  Corporations  interested  in  the  construction  may  be 
heard,  as  well  as  the  corporations  and  authorities  which,  in  their  judg- 
ment, may  shed  light  on  the  subject,  as  well  as  the  Consulting  Board 
of  Eoads,  Canals,  and  Ports;  and  he  shall  then  submit,  as  a  result  of 
this  hearing,  the  form  of  Law  to  the  Cortes  in  order  that  the  railroad 
be  included  in  the  plan  of  those  of  general  service.  This  declaration 
being  made,  the  proceedings  determined  by  the  articles  of  Chapter  III 
to  grant  the  concession,  if  there  be  grounds  for  it,  shall  be  followed. 

ART.  29.  When  two  or  more  petitions  are  presented  with  different 
plans,  so  that  a  railroad  of  public  service  is  declared  of  general  utility, 
a  hearing  on  all  of  the  plans,  as  provided  for  by  the  previous  article, 
shall  be  given,  so  that  the  law  making  the  declaration  shall  redound 
to  the  benefit  of  the  one  offering  greater  advantages  to  the  general 
interests  of  the  country. 

CHAPTER  IY. 

PRIVILEGES    AND    GENERAL   EXEMPTIONS    GRANTED    TO    COMPANIES 
HOLDING  CONCESSIONS   OF  RAILROADS   OF   GENERAL  UTILITY. 

ART.  30.  Foreign  capital  employed  in  the  construction  of  railroads, 
and  loans  for  this  purpose,  shall  be  under  the  protection  of  the  State, 
and  are  exempt  from  reprisals,  confiscations,  or  attachments  by  reason  of 
war. 

ART.  31.  The  following  shall  be  granted  to  all  railroad  companies  of 
general  utility : 

1.  The  public  lauds  which  the  road  and  its  appurtenances  may  have 
to  occupy. 

2.  The  rights  which  the  inhabitants  of  the  districts  through  which 
the  line  passes  have  to  cut  timber,  to  pasturage,  and  other  rights,  shall 
be  enjoyed  by  the  employees  and  laborers  of  the  companies,  and  for  the 
care  of  its  draft  animals  employed  in  the  works. 

3.  The  right  to  open  quarries,  gather  loose  stone,  construct  lime, 
chalk,  and  brick  kilns,  to  deposit  materials  and  to  establish  workshops 
on  lands  adjoining  the  lines.    If  these  be  public  lands,  the  right  shall 
be  used  after  giving  previous  notice  to  the  local  authority;  but  if  they 
be  private  property,  or  property  of  the  province  or  municipalities,  the 
lands  may  be  used  only  after  the  parties  have  agreed,  either  by  mutual 
consent  or  by  virtue  of  the  law  of  eminent  domain,  with  reference  to 
the  temporary  occupation. 

4.  The  exclusive  right  to  collect,  while  the  concession  lasts  and 
according  to  the  schedule  of  rates  approved,  the  rates  charged  for  pas- 
sengers and  freight,  without  prejudice  to  those  belonging  to  other 
companies. 


11 

5.  For  the  lines  which  can  revert  to  the  State,  the  exemption  from  the 
mortgage  charges  due  on  account  of  the  charges  for  transfers  of  prop- 
erty, made  by  the  construction  of  these  railroad  lines  and  their  appur- 
tenances, by  virtue  of  the  law  of  eminent  domain,  as  well  as  those  arising 
from  contracts  for  the  same  purposes,  made  by  the  companies  with 
individuals. 

CHAPTER  V. 

FORFEITURE  OF  THE  CONCESSION  OF  RAILROADS  OF  GENERAL 

SERVICE. 

ART.  32.  The  declaration  of  the  forfeiture  of  the  concession  of  a  line 
of  general  service  shall  always  be  made  after  proceedings  instituted  in 
accordance  with  the  Eegulations. 

ART.  33.  In  order  to  declare  the  forfeiture  of  a  concession  the  full 
council  of  State  must  be  heard. 

ART.  34.  The  holder  of  the  concession  may  appeal  from  the  decision 
of  the  Government,  declaring  the  forfeiture  to  the  administrative  offi- 
cers where  these  matters  are  in  controversy  within  the  period  of  two 
months  from  the  day  of  publication  in  the  Official  Gazette. 

If  he  does  not  appeal  within  this  time  the  ministerial  decision  shall 
be  considered  as  consented  to,  and  there  shall  be  no  recourse  whatever 
against  it. 

ART.  35.  The  forfeiture  of  a  concession  on  account  of  failure  to  per- 
form, attributed  to  the  holder  thereof,  shall  always  be  accompanied  by 
the  loss  of  the  bond  to  the  benefit  of  the  State. 

ART.  3G.  The  concessions  of  railroads  included  in  this  chapter  shall 
lapse  in  any  of  the  following  cases: 

1.  If  the  works  are  not  commenced  or  finished  within  the  time  fixed 
by  the  law  of  concession,  except  in  cases  of  force  majeure,  so  declared 
after  proceedings,  in  which  the  full  Council  of  State  shall  be  heard. 
When  any  of  these  cases  occur,  and  are  duly  proven,  the  time  pre- 
scribed by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  may  be  extended  for  the 
period  absolutely  necessary,  which  can  never  exceed  that  fixed  in  the 
concession  for  the  construction  of  the  works.     The  extension  having 
ended,  the  concession  shall  lapse  if  the  provisions  prescribed  at  the 
time  of  its  execution  are  not  fulfilled. 

2.  If  the  public  service  of  the  line  be  totally  or  partially  interrupted, 
except  in  cases  of  force  majeure,  declared  to  be  such  in  the  manner 
prescribed  by  the  first  paragraph  of  this  article. 

3.  When  the  company  owning  the  concession  is  dissolved  by  an 
administrative  or  judicial  act,  or  declared  in  bankruptcy. 

ART.  37.  In  the  cases  of  forfeiture  by  dissolution  or  bankruptcy,  the 
Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  take  possession  of  the  works  and  of 
the  fixed  and  rolling  stock,  taking  charge  of  the  operation  through  a 
council  which  he  shall  appoint,  in  which  he  shall  give  representation  to 
the  stock  and  bond  holders  and  to  the  creditors  of  the  lapsed  company. 


12 

ART.  38.  If,  when  the  forfeiture  is  declared,  the  works  have  not  been 
begun,  the  administration  shall  be  freed  from  all  liability  to  the  holder 
of  the  concession.  If  any  of  the  works  had  been  executed,  or  all  of 
them,  they  shall  be  sold  at  auction,  awarding  the  concession  to  the 
best  bidder.  The  new  owner  of  the  concession  shall  then  pay  the 
former  owner  the  amount  offered  at  the  auction. 

The  basis  for  this  auction  shall  be  the  amount,  according  to  appraisal, 
of  the  cost  of  the  plan,  the  land  purchased,  the  works  executed,  and 
the  construction  and  operation  material  on  hand,  deducting  the  pay- 
ments made  to  the  concessionaire  and  delivered  to  the  same  in  laud, 
works,  specie,  etc.  The  appraisal  shall  be  made  by  the  Engineers  of 
Roads,  Canals,  and  Ports,  whom  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  may 
select,  and  by  the  experts  appointed  by  the  concessionaire. 

ART.  39.  If  no  bidder  appears  at  the  auction  mentioned  in  the  pre- 
ceding article,  a  new  auction  shall  be  advertised  during  the  period  of 
two  months,  and  with  the  basis  of  two  thirds  of  the  amount  of  the 
appraisal.  If  no  bidders  appear  at  this  new  auction,  a  third  and  last 
auction  shall  be  advertised  during  the  period  of  one  month,  without 
any  fixed  basis. 

ART.  40.  If  at  any  of  the  three  auctions  referred  to  in  the  preceding 
articles  bids  were  made  within  the  advertised  conditions,  the  railroad 
shall  be  awarded  to  the  best  bidder,  who  shall  pay  as  a  guaranty  the 
amount  of  3  or  5  per  cent  of  the  value  of  the  works,  to  be  executed  in 
accordance  with  the  concession ;  and  the  effects  of  this  law  shall  be 
applicable  to  the  new  concessionaire,  the  same  as  they  were  applicable 
to  the  former,  and  he  shall  be  liable  to  all  the  provisions,  substituting 
the  former  concessionaire  in  all  his  liabilities  and  rights. 

ART.  41.  From  the  cost  of  the  works  auctioned,  which  the  bidder 
shall  pay,  as  provided  for  by  the  previous  article,  the  expenses  of 
appraisal  and  auction  shall  be  deducted,  and  the  remainder  shall  be 
delivered  to  whom  it  may  rightfully  belong. 

ART.  42.  In  case  the  concession  is  not  awarded  in  any  of  the  three 
consecutive  auctions,  the  State  shall  take  possession  of  the  works,  to 
continue  them  if  it  was  considered  convenient  in  accordance  with  the 
provisions  of  the  law,  without  the  original  holder  of  the  concession 
having  the  right  to  any  indemnity  whatsoever. 

CHAPTER  YI. 

CONDITIONS  OF   CONSTRUCTION   TO  WHICH   THAT   OF   RAILROADS   FOR 
GENERAL    SERVICE   MUST   CONFORM. 

ART.  43.  The  railroads  of  general  service  shall  be  constructed  accord- 
ing to  the  following  conditions: 

1.  The  gauge  of  the  track  or  distance  between  the  two  interior  sides 
of  the  rails  shall  be  1  meter  67  centimeters  (6  Castilian  feet). 

2,  The  gauge  of  the  tracks  shall  be  1  meter  and  80  centimeters  (6 
feet  6  inches  Castilian  measurement). 


13 

3.  The  other  dimensions,  as  well  as  the  other  conditions  of  construc- 
tion, shall  be  fixed  in  each  particular  case  by  the  Secretary  of  Public 
Works  after  hearing  the  Consulting   Board   of  Roads,  Canals,  and 
Ports. 

4.  The  roads  of  general  service  may  be  constructed  with  one  or  two 
tracks  or  by  combining  these  systems. 

ART.  44.  When  lines  not  included  in  the  general  system  are  to  be 
established  the  technical  conditions  mentioned  in  the  preceding  article 
may  be  modified,  and  those  to  which  the  line  must  conform  shall  be 
fixed  in  a  special  law,  which  must  precede  the  concession. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

OPERATION    OF    RAILROADS. 

ART.  45.  Every  railroad  shall  have  two  distinct  uses — for  passengers 
and  for  freight. 

ART.  40.  The  charges  for  each  shall  be  fixed  by  the  schedules  of  rates 
in  force  for  each  line. 

ART.  47.  The  document  of  conditions  of  the  concession  shall  desig- 
nate the  special  schedule  of  rates  for  certain  services  to  the  State  as 
well  as  those  which  are  free.  Among  the  latter  is  the  carrying  of  the 
regular  mails,  which,  as  well  as  everything  necessary  for  the  operation 
of  railroads,  shall  be  determined  by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works, 
with  the  concurrence  of  the  proper  Secretaries,  as  the  case  may  be. 

ART.  48.  From  the  carrying  companies  and  from  individuals  who 
use  their  own  materials  the  legal  freight  only  may  be  demanded. 

ART.  49.  After  the  first  five  years  that  the  railroad  is  in  operation, 
and  thereafter  every  five  years,  a  revision  of  the  schedules  of  rates  shall 
be  made. 

If  the  Government,  without  injury  to  the  interests  of  the  company, 
believes  that  the  rates  may  be  lowered,  but  the  company  does  not  agree 
to  the  reduction,  it  may,  nevertheless,  be  made  by  a  law,  guaranteeing 
to  the  company  the  total  earnings  of  the  last  year  aud,  besides,  the 
average  progressive  increase  of  the  earnings  which  they  may  have  had 
in  the  last  five  years. 

ART.  50.  The  companies  may  at  any  time  reduce  the  schedule  of 
rates  as  they  may  deem  best,  advising  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works. 

ART.  51.  When  schedules  of  rates  are  to  be  changed  it  shall  be  duly 
announced  beforehand  to  the  public. 

ART.  52.  There  shall  be  established  along  the  roads  a  telegraph  line, 
the  number  of  wires  of  which,  and  other  conditions  as  to  the  general 
and  official  service,  shall  be  determined  in  the  document  of  conditions 
of  the  concession. 

ART.  53.  When  the  public  service  of  the  company  is  totally  or  par- 
tially interrupted  owing  to  its  own  fault,  the  Government  shall,  as  a 
matter  of  course,  take  the  steps  necessary  to  secure  said  public  service 
temporarily  at  the  expense  of  the  company. 


14 

Within  a  period  of  six  mouths  the  cornpauy  holding  the  concession 
must  prove  that  it  has  sufficient  means  to  continue  its  operation;  the 
company  may  cede  the  operation  to  another  company  or  third  person, 
after  a  previous  special  authorization  of  the  Government, 

If  even  by  this  proceeding  the  service  is  not  renewed  the  concession 
shall  be  considered  as  forfeited  and,  therefore,  what  is  prescribed  by 
the  articles  of  Chapter  Y  shall  be  complied  with. 

ART.  54.  The  operation  of  railroads  belonging  to  the  State  shall  be 
carried  on  by  the  Government  or  by  companies  which  may  contract 
for  the  service  at  public  auction,  as  it  may  be  best  for  the  interests  of 
the  public. 

ART.  55.  In  all  concessions  there  shall  be  stated  the  right  of  the 
Government  to  the  necessary  supervision  and  intervention,  so  as  to 
keep  the  service  of  the  railroad  in  good  condition  and  to  secure  the 
expenses  and  receipts  of  the  company. 

ART.  56.  In  the  Law  and  Kegulations  to  be  made  for  the  police  of 
railroads  there  shall  be  determined  whatever  is  proper  for  their  main- 
tenance and  security. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

PLANS   FOR   RAILROAD   LINES. 

ART.  57.  The  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  order  that  plans  of 
the  lines  included  in  the  general  system  be  made,  or  those  begun  be 
completed,  by  Engineers  of  Eoads,  Canals,  and  Ports,  so  that  with  the 
respective  plans  of  the  lines  the  Government  may  submit  to  the  Cortes 
the  proper  form  of  law  authorizing  the  auction. 

ART.  58.  The  Secretary  of  Public  Works  may  authorize  individuals 
or  companies  to  make  plans  so  as  to  collect  the  facts  and  documents 
which,  according  to  the  provisions  of  this  Law,  are  necessary  to  obtain 
the  concession  of  a  line.  This  authorization  can  not  be  understood  as 
granting  any  right  whatever  against  the  State,  nor  limiting  in  any  way 
the  right  which  the  Department  of  Public  Works  has  to  grant  equal 
authorizations  to  those  who  may  want  to  study  the  same  line. 

ART.  59.  The  concession  for  plans  shall  be  preceded  by  the  deposit 
of  the  bond,  that  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  consider  suffi- 
cient, to  answer  for  the  damages  which  the  said  study  may  occasion  in 
the  lands  traversed  by  the  line. 

The  approval  of  the  plans  shall  not  take  place  until  it  has  been  gone 
over  on  the  ground  by  the  Engineers  of  the  State  and  the  opinion 
given  by  the  Consulting  Board  of  Eoads,  Canals,  and  Ports. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

INTERVENTION   OF   THE   GOVERNMENT   IN  RAILROADS. 

ART.  60.  The  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  decide  all  questions 
regarding  the  construction  and  operation  of  railroads,  as  well  as  the 
police  of  the  same,  and  the  compliance  with  the  document  of  condi- 


15 

tions,  including  the  schedules  of  rates  for  storage,  loading  and  unload- 
ing, and  transportation. 

ART.  61.  The  supervision  as  to  the  maintenance  and  operation  of  the 
railroads  appertaining  to  the  Government  shall  be  made  through  the 
Secretary  of  Public  Works. 

The  Eegulations  and  special  instructions  which  may  be  ordered  for 
the  fulfillment  of  this  law  shall  determine  the  organization  of  the  per- 
sonnel devoted  to  this  service,  the  conditions  of  efficiency  which  the 
individuals  of  the  said  service  must  show  when  they  are  not  experts  of 
Public  Works,  and  the  duties  of  both. 

CHAPTER  X. 

RAILROADS   DEVOTED   TO   PRIVATE   USE. 

ART.  62.  Eailroads  devoted  to  the  operation  of  an  industry  or  to 
private  use  may  be  constructed  without  any  other  restrictions  than 
those  imposed  by  the  Eegulations  as  to  safety  and  public  health,  pro- 
vided that  the  works  do  not  occupy  or  affect  public  property  nor  that 
there  be  required  for  their  construction  the  exercise  of  the  right  of 
eminent  domain. 

ART.  63.  The  right  to  seize  by  eminent  domain  can  not  be  granted 
to  a  railroad  included  in  the  preceding  article,  nor  the  occupation  of 
State  lands ;  but  public  lands  may  be  seized  and  occupied  in  conformity 
with  the  General  Law  of  Public  Works. 

ART.  64.  When  railroads  devoted  to  the  operation  of  an  industry  or 
to  private  use  are  of  such  importance  that  they  are  capable  of  render- 
ing public  service,  the  occupation  of  lands  belonging  to  the  State  may 
be  granted  by  means  of  a  Law  and  the  right  of  eminent  domain. 

ART.  65.  After  the  concession  to  which  the  preceding  articles  refer 
has  been  made,  the  individual  or  company  obtaining  it  may  construct 
the  railroad  and  use  it  as  he  or  it  may  deem  best,  with  no  further  inter- 
vention on  the  part  of  the  Government  than  that  relating  to  conditions 
of  safety,  police,  and  good  government  of  property  belonging  to  the 
public. 

ART.  66.  The  individuals  or  companies  who  desire  to  construct  and 
operate  a  railroad  of  those  included  in  the  preceding  articles,  shall 
address  their  petition  to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  accompanied 
by  the  plans. 

ART.  67.  The  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  for  his  information,  shall 
request  all  the  reports  which  he  may  deem  proper,  the  previous  opinion 
of  the  Consulting  Board  of  the  Corps  of  Engineers  of  Eoads,  Canals, 
and  Ports  being  an  indispensable  requisite. 

ART.  68.  These  railroads,  unless  otherwise  provided  for  in  a  special 
Law,  shall  be  granted  by  the  Government  for  ninety-nine  years,  when- 
ever the  occupation  of  public  property  is  asked  for. 

When  the  railroads  ask  for  the  declaration  of  public  utility,  it  shall 
be  the  subject  of  a  law. 


16 

CHAPTER  XI. 

TRAMWAYS. 

ART.  69.  Under  the  name  of  tramways  are  designated,  for  the  pur- 
poses of  this  law,  the  railroads  constructed  on  the  public  highways. 

ART.  70.  The  approval  of  the  plans  of  tramways  which  are  to  occupy 
the  roads  belonging  to  the  State  or  Province  belongs  to  the  Secretary 
of  Public  Works. 

The  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  also  approve,  after  proper  pro- 
ceedings in  accordance  with  the  Provincial  and  Municipal  Law,  the 
plans  of  tramways,  the  development  of  which  demands  the  simulta- 
neous occupation  of  roads  belonging  to  the  State  or  to  the  Province 
and  of  Municipal  roads  or  the  streets  of  towns. 

ART.  71.  When  the  tramways  are  to  be  constructed  on  municipal 
roads,  the  approval  of  the  plans  shall  belong  to  the  Civil  Governors, 
who,  in  order  to  grant  it,  must  hear  the  Engineers  in  Chief  of  Eoads 
of  the  Provinces. 

ART.  72.  In  all  cases  when  the  power  to  be  used  is  other  than  animal 
force,  the  approval  of  the  plans  of  the  tramways  belongs  to  the  Secre- 
tary of  Public  Works. 

ART.  73.  The  concession  of  tramways  belongs  to  the  Secretary  of 
Public  Works,  when  the  works  are  to  occupy  State  highroads  of  two 
or  more  Provinces,  or  shall  simultaneously  traverse  highroads  of  the 
State  and  highways  of  the  Provinces  and  of  Municipalities,  after  proper 
proceedings,  in  accordance  with  the  Provincial  and  Municipal  laws  in 
the  last  two  cases. 

ART.  74.  When  the  tramways  are  to  be  constructed  on  highroads 
which  are  exclusively  in  charge  of  one  Province,  or  traversing  two 
or  more  Municipalities,  the  concession  belongs  to  the  Provincial 
Deputation. 

ART.  75.  The  concessions  belong  to  the  Municipal  Council  when  the 
tramways  occupy  roads  which  are  in  charge  of  a  single  Municipality. 
When  they  are  essentially  town  roads,  it  must  be  preceded  by  the 
approval  of  the  Interior  Department. 

ART.  76.  Tramway  concessions  can  not  be  granted  for  more  than  sixty 
years,  and  shall  be  subject  to  an  auction  in  regard  to  the  maximum 
schedule  of  rates  or  to  the  duration  of  the  concession. 

ART.  77.  In  the  Regulations  which  shall  be  drawn  for  the  compliance 
of  the  present  law,  the  general  conditions  to  which  tramways  must 
conform  in  relation  to  the  technical  conditions,  as  well  as  to  the  steps 
to  be  taken  in  the  granting  of  the  concession,  shall  be  stated. 

ART.  78.  In  the  document  of  special  conditions,  which  must  form 
part  of  the  concession  of  every  tramway,  the  special  conditions  shall 
be  determined  which,  besides  the  general  ones  to  which  the  previous 
article  refers,  are  to  govern  in  matters  of  construction  and  operation. 


17 

GENERAL  PROVISIONS. 

ART.  79.  The  provisions  of  the  present  law  shall  not  invalidate  any 
of  the  rights  acquired  previously  to  its  publication  and  in  compliance 
with  the  then  existing  legislation. 

ART.  80.  All  laws,  decrees,  and  other  provisions  previously  existing, 
which  are  in  opposition  to  the  present  law,  are  hereby  repealed. 

Therefore,  we  command  all  Tribunals,  Justices,  Chiefs,  Governors, 
and  all  other  authorities,  civil,  military,  and  ecclesiastical,  of  any  class 
and  dignity  whatsoever,  to  observe  and  to  see  that  the  present  law  is 
observed,  carried  out,  and  executed  in  all  its  parts. 

Given  at  the  Palace  on  the  23d  of  November,  1877. 

I,  THE  KINO. 

C.  FRANCISCO  QUEIPO  DE  LLANO, 

Secretary  of  Public  Work*. 


LAW. 

Don  Alfonso  XII,  by  the  Grace  of  God  Constitutional  King  of  Spain. 

Know  all  ye  who  see  and  understand  these  presents :  That  in  accord- 
ance with  the  bases  approved  by  the  Cortes  which  were  promulgated 
as  a  law  on  December  29,  1876;  making  use  of  the  authorization 
granted  by  the  same  law  to  my  Secretary  of  Public  Works ;  hearing 
the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  in  the  matters  of  his  special  competence, 
and  hearing  also  the  full  Council  of  State  and  the  Consulting  Board 
of  Koads,  Canals,  and  Ports,  and  in  conformity  with  my  Council  of 
Secretaries, 

I  have  decreed  and  sanctioned  the  following  law 

TITLE  I. 

PROVISIONS  FOR  THE  PRESERVATION  OF  PUBLIC  ROADS  APPLICABLE 

TO   RAILROADS. 

ARTICLE  1.  The  Laws  and  Regulations  of  the  Administration  as  to 
highways  are  applicable  to  Eailroads  when  their  object  is — 

1.  The  preservation  of  trenches,  drains,  walls,  buildings,  and  other 
kinds  of  works. 

2.  The  rights  (servitudes)  for  the  preservation  of  the  roads  charged 
on  the  adjoining  cultivated  lands. 

3.  The  servitudes  on  these  same  lands  as  to  laying  out  lines,  construc- 
tions of  all  kinds,  opening  of  ditches,  free  course  of  water,  planting, 
pruning  of  trees,  working  of  mines,  lands,  places  for  dumping  refuse 
ore,  quarries,  and  any  other  whatsoever.    The  zone  to  which  these  rights 
extend  is  20  meters  on  each  side  of  the  railroad. 

4.  The  prohibitions  the  object  of  which  is  to  prevent  all  kinds  of 
damage  to  the  road. 

2512 2 


18 

5.  Prohibiting  the  placing  of  hanging  or  projecting  objects  which 
may  inconvenience  or  endanger  persons  on  the  road. 

6.  Prohibiting  the  establishment  of  deposits  of  materials,   stones, 
earth,  manure,  products,  or  any  other  thing  which  may  impede  free 
transit. 

TITLE  II. 

PROVISIONS    FOR     THE     PRESERVATION     OF     ROADS     WHICH     REFER 
ESPECIALLY   TO   RAILROADS. 

ART.  2.  Along  the  whole  distance  of  the  railroad  neither  the  entry 
nor  the  grazing  of  cattle  shall  be  allowed.  If  the  railroad  has  to  cross 
a  highway  where  cattle  pass,  the  railroad  shall  always  cross  without 
changing  or  stopping  the  progress  of  the  trains  and  in  the  manner 
provided  for  as  a  general  rule  for  that  crossing. 

ART.  3.  In  the  future,  in  a  zone  of  3  meters  on  each  side  of  the  rail- 
road, only  fencing  walls  shall  be  constructed,  but  no  facades  having 
openings  or  projections.  This  provision  does  not  refer  to  buildings 
constructed  before  the  promulgation  of  this  law  or  the  construction 
of  a  railroad,  which  maybe  separated  and  maintained  in  the  condition 
in  which  they  are,  but  can  not  be  rebuilt.  If  it  be  necessary  to  demol- 
ish or  change  a  building  for  the  benefit  of  a  railroad,  the  proceedings 
shall  be  according  to  the  provisions  of  Article  11  of  this  Law. 

ART.  4.  Within  the  zone  indicated  in  paragraph  3  of  Article  1  no 
buildings  may  be  constructed  covered  with  thatch  or  other  combustible 
materials  when  the  railroad  is  operated  by  means  of  locomotives. 

ART.  5.  The  prohibition  to  establish  deposits  of  materials,  earth, 
stones,  or  anything  mentioned  in  the  sixth  paragraph  of  Article  1,  in 
the  case  of  railroads,  includes  5  meters  on  each  side  of  the  road  as  to 
objects  not  inflammable  and  20  meters  as  to  inflammable  objects. 

ART.  6.  The  prohibition  of  the  preceding  article  shall  not  be  opera- 
tive when — 

1.  The  deposits  of  incombustible  material  shall  not  be  higher  than 
the  road,  when  the  latter  is  on  an  embankment. 

2.  The  deposits  of  materials  to  be  employed  for  fertilizing  and  culti- 
vating lands,  and  harvests  during  their  gathering,  are  temporary;  but 
in  case  of  fire  due  to  the  passing  of  locomotives  the  owners  shall  have 
no  right  to  an  indemnity. 

ART.  7.  The  Governor  of  the  Province  may  authorize,  after  hearing 
the  Engineers  of  the  Government  and  of  the  Companies,  the  deposit 
of  uninflammable  materials;  but  the  authorization  shall  be  revocable 
at  his  will.  The  Governor  may  not  authorize  deposits  of  inflammable 
materials. 

ART.  8.  The  railroads  throughout  their  length  shall  be  fenced  on 
both  sides.  The  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  after  hearing  the  Company, 
in  case  there  be  one,  shall  determine  for  each  line  the  manner  in  which 
and  time  when  the  fencing  is  to  be  made.  When  railroads  cross  others 


19 

on  the  same  level,  gates  shall  be  constructed  which  shall  be  closed,  and 
only  opened  when  vehicles  and  cattle  cross,  as  provided  for  in  the 
regulations. 

TITLE  III. 

PROVISI'  TO    THE   PRECEDING   TITLES. 

ART.  9.  The  distance  fixed  in  paragraph  3  of  Article  1  and  in  Arti- 
>  and  5  of  this  Law  shall  be  measured  from  the  lower  line  of  the 
walls  of  the  embankment  of  railroads,  from  the  upper  line  of  the  clear- 
ing, and  from  the  outer  border  of  the  trenches.  If  there  be  no  such 
lines,  the  measures  shall  be  from  a  line  drawn  a  meter  and  a  half  from 
the  outside  of  the  railroad.  The  Regulations  will  fix  the  minimum 
distance  from  the  stations  at  which  buildings  may  be  constructed  or 
deposits  established. 

ART.  10.  The  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  in  special  cases,  may  reduce 
the  distances  to  which  the  preceding  article  refers,  after  the  proper 
steps  are  taken  showing  the  necessity  or  convenience  of  the  reduction, 
and  if  no  harm  is  done  to  the  regularity,  preservation,  and  free  transit 
of  the  road. 

ART.  11.  Whenever  there  exist  individual  rights  previous  to  the  con- 
struction of  a  railroad  or  the  publication  of  this  law,  which  rights  can 
not  be  enforced,  or  if  it  be  necessary  to  abolish  these  rights  on  account 
of  the  necessity  or  utility  of  the  railroads,  the  rules  established  in  the 
Law  of  July  17, 1836,  shall  be  observed  as  to  forcible  condemnation  by 
reason  of  public  utility,  and  also  the  provisions  of  the  Laws  of  Public 
Works  and  the  regulations  issued  for  their  execution  by  the  Adminis- 
tration. 

TITLE  IV. 

OFFENSES  OF  OWNERS  OF  CONCESSIONS  AND  LESSORS  OF  RAILROADS. 

ART.  lii.  The  owner  of  the  concession  or  the  lessor  for  the  operation 
of  a  railroad  who  shall  not  comply  with  the  general  document  of  con- 
ditions, or  the  special  ones  of  the  concession,  or  the  resolutions  for  the 
execution  of  these  clauses  in  everything  referring  to  the  operation  of 
the  line,  or  of  the  telegraph,  or  as  to  navigation,  or  use  of  all  roads  or 
free  course  of  waters,  shall  incur  a  fine  of  250  to  2,500  pesetas. 

ART.  13.  The  owner  of  the  concsssions,  or  the  lessor,  shall  also  be 
obliged  to  make  amends  for  the  errors  and  damages  caused  within  the 
time  fixed  ;  if  he  does  not  do  so  the  administration  shall  do  it,  demand- 
ing from  him  the  amount  of  the  expenses  and  attaching  the  earnings 
of  the  stations. 

ART.  14.  The  owners  of  the  concession,  or  lessors  of  the  railroads, 
shall  be  responsible  to  the  State  and  to  individuals  for  damages  caused 
by  the  Managers.  Directors,  and  other  employeevS  in  the  service  and 
operation  of  the  railroad  and  telegraph.  If  the  railroad  is  operated  by 


20 

the  State,  tbe  State  shall  be  subject  to  the  same  liability  in  regard 
to  individuals.  Let  it  be  understood  that  what  has  been  stated  in  this 
article  is  without  prejudice  to  the  personal  liability  which  Managers, 
Administrators,  Engineers,  and  all  classes  of  employees  may  incur,  and 
the  discretionary  authority  which  in  cases  of  strikes,  disturbances  of 
public  order,  and  conspiracies  appertains  to  the  Government. 

ART.  15.  The  Department  of  Public  Works,  without  intervening  in 
the  appointment  of  the  employees  of  the  companies  for  the  service  of 
operating  the  railroad,  may  require  the  company  to  dismiss  the 
employees  whom  it  may  consider  dangerous  to  the  safety  of  passengers 
and  the  maintenance  of  public  order. 

TITLE  Y. 

TRANSGRESSIONS  AND   CRIMES    AGAINST   THE   SAFETY  AND    PRESER- 
VATION  OF   RAILROADS. 

ART.  16.  Any  one  willfully  destroying  or  damaging  a  railroad  or 
placing  obstacles  on  it  which  shall  obstruct  the  free  transit  or  cause  the 
derailing  of  a  train,  shall  be  punished  with  imprisonment.  In  case  the 
train  has  been  derailed  the  imprisonment  shall  be  in  the  penitentiary. 

ART.  17.  In  case  the  destruction  or  damage  is  caused  in  time  of 
rebellion  or  sedition,  and  the  authors  of  the  crime  do  not  appear,  the 
principal  authors  or  leaders  of  the  sedition  or  rebellion  shall  incur  the 
penalty  imposed  in  the  previous  article. 

ART.  18.  The  provisions  of  the  preceding  articles  shall  be  understood 
to  be  without  prejudice  to  the  civil  and  criminal  liability  which  the 
guilty  parties  may  incur,  for  crimes  of  homicide,  wounds,  and  injuries 
of  all  kinds  which  may  occur,  and  for  those  of  rebellion  and  sedition. 

ART.  19.  When  two  or  more  penalties  concur,  the  Judges  and  Courts 
shall  impose  the  greater  in  its  maximum  degree. 

ART.  20.  Those  who  threaten  the  commission  of  a  crime  included  in 
Articles  16  and  17  shall  be  punished  with  the  penalties  provided  for 
in  Article  107  of  the  Penal  Code.  The  scale  therein  established  shall 
be  observed,  but  always  imposing  the  maximum  degree,  and,  when  the 
degree  shall  be  fixed,  the  next  highest  one  in  its  minimum  degree. 

ART.  21.  Whosoever  through  ignorance,  imprudence,  or  by  reason  of 
negligence  or  failure  to  comply  with  the  Laws  and  Eegulations,  causes 
in  the  Eailroad  or  its  dependencies  some  damage  which  may  injure  per- 
sons or  property,  shall  be  punished,  according  to  Article  581  of  the 
Penal  Code,  by  reason  of  gross  negligence. 

ART.  22.  The  engineers,  conductors,  brakemen,  station  masters,  tel- 
egraph operators,  and  other  employees  charged  with  the  service  and 
care  of  the  line,  who  abandon  their  respective  posts  while  on  duty,  shall 
be  punished  with  the  same  penalties.  But  if  some  injury  is  occasioned 
to  persons  or  things,  they  shall  be  punished  with  the  penalty  of  correc- 
tional imprisonment  or  minor  imprisonment. 


21 

ART.  23.  Those  who  interfere  with  the  railroad  employees,  while 
performing  their  duty,  shall  be  punished  with  the  penalties  which  the 
Penal  Code  imposes  on  those  who  resist  the  agents  of  the  Government. 

ART.  24.  Those  who  violate  the  Regulations  included  in  Titles  1  and 
2  of  this  law,  the  Eegulations  of  the  Administration,  and  the  orders  of 
the  Governors  as  to  police,  safety,  and  operation  of  Eailroads,  shall  be 
punished  with  a  fine  of  15  to  150  pesetas,  according  to  the  gravity  and 
circumstances  of  the  case  and  its  perpetrator.  If,  according  to  the 
Penal  Code,  they  have  incurred  a  graver  penalty,  only  the  latter  shall 
be  imposed.  In  case  of  recurrence  of  the  crime  the  fine  shall  be  from 
30  to  300  pesetas. 

ART.  25.  Those  not  paying  the  fine  imposed  upon  them  shall  be  liable 
to  execution  against  the  person,  according  to  the  provisions  of  Article 
50  of  the  Penal  Code. 

ART.  26.  Without  prejudice  to  the  penalties  stated  in  the  preceding 
articles,  those  who  shall  have  infringed  the  Regulations  of  this  Law 
shall  destroy  the  excavations,  constructions,  and  covers,  take  away  the 
deposits  of  inflammable  material,  or  of  any  other  kind  which  may  have 
been  made,  and  repair  the  damages  occasioned  in  the  Kailroads.  The 
Mayors  shall  fix  a  time  for  the  performance  after  hearing  the  repre- 
sentative of  the  Administration  of  the  Railroad  or  the  Company  itself. 
If  within  the  time  fixed  this  shall  not  be  done,  the  Government  shall  do 
it  at  the  expense  of  the  party  who  may  have  disobeyed.  In  this  case 
the  collection  of  the  expenses  shall  be  made  in  the  same  manner  as  that 
of  taxes. 

TITLE  VI. 

PROCEDURE. 

ART.  27.  Those  who  commit  crimes  punishable  under  this  law  shall 
be  tried  in  the  ordinary  way,  whatever  be  their  right  to  other  trial. 

ART.  28.  Those  who  have  only  incurred  a  fine  shall  be  excepted  from 
the  provisions  of  the  preceding  article.  For  the  imposition  of  the  fines 
the  following  rules  shall  be  observed : 

1.  The  right  to  inform  belongs  to  the  people. 

2.  The  denunciations  shall  be  made  to  the  Municipal  Judges  in  whose 
districts  the  transgression  was  committed. 

3.  The  proceedings  and  steps  in  these  actions  shall  be  the  ones  pro- 
vided for  in  cases  of  common  transgressions. 

4.  The  testimony  of  those  in  charge  of  the  management  of  the  road 
and  the  sworn  guards  shall  be  sufficient,  except  when  there  is  evidence 
to  the  contrary. 

5.  Municipal  Judges  shall  see  to  the  fulfillment  of  the  penalties 
imposed  in  these  cases. 

ART.  29.  The  penalties  imposed  on  the  owners  of  the  concessions  or 
lessors  of  the  railroad  in  the  cases  mentioned  in  Article  12  may  only  be 
imposed  by  the  Governors  after  hearing  the  interested  parties,  the  Chief 


22 

Engineer  of  the  Division,  and  the  Council  of  Administration  which 
hears  disputes.  The  fines  imposed  by  the  Governors  on  the  owners  of 
concessions  or  lessors  of  railroads  shall  not  be  remitted  except  by  the 
Department  of  Public  Works,  after  hearing  the  Council  of  State. 

Therefore :  We  command  all  Tribunals,  Justices,  Chiefs,  Governors, 
and  all  other  authorities,  civil,  military  and  ecclesiastical,  of  any  class 
and  dignity  whatsoever,  to  observe  and  to  see  that  the  present  law  is 
observed,  carried  out,  and  executed  in  all  its  parts. 

Given  at  the  Palace  on  the  23d  of  November,  1877. 

I,  THE  KING. 

C.  FRANCISCO  QUEIPO  DE  LLANO, 

Secretary  of  Public  Works. 


REGULATIONS  FOR  THE  EXECUTION  OF  THE  RAILROAD  LAW 
OF  NOVEMBER  23, 1877. 


CHAPTER  I. 

FORMALITIES  NECESSARY  FOR  THE  DECLARATION  OF  GENERAL  SERV- 
ICE OF  A  RAILROAD  LINE  NOT  INCLUDED  IN  THE  PLAN  OF  THE 
STATE. 

ARTICLE  1.  The  lines  of  general  service,  constituting  the  plan  of  this 
class  of  works,  having  been  fixed  by  Article  4  of  the  Law  of  Kailroads, 
iii  order  to  make  any  change  in  the  said  plan  the  formalities  expressed 
in  the  said  law  and  the  provisions  of  these  Regulations  must  be  com- 
plied with. 

ART.  2.  Whenever  it  may  be  deemed  necessary  or  convenient  to  add 
a  railroad  line  to  the  plan,  a  preliminary  plan  of  the  same  must  be 
made,  in  conformity  with  the  provisions  for  such  cases  of  Article  9  of 
the  Regulations  of  July  6,  1877,  for  carrying  out  the  General  Law  of 
Public  Works. 

This  preliminary  plan  shall  consist  of  the  following  documents: 

1.  An  explanatory  memorial,  in  which  a  general  description  of  the 
works  shall  be  made,  and  the  convenience  of  the  line  and  the  utility  of 
the  railroad,  the  construction  of  which  is  to  be  of  general   interest, 
shall  be  shown. 

2.  A  general  plan  and  a  longitudinal  profile,  which  shall  show  the 
direction  to  be  followed  by  the  line  and  shall  demonstrate  the  possi- 
bility of  its  realization  within  the  technical  conditions  acceptable  in 
this  class  of  roads. 

3.  An  estimate,  as  near  as  possible,  of  the  cost  of  the  railroad,  includ- 
ing the  rolling  stock  necessary  for  its  operation. 

4.  The  principal  items  of  the  schedule  of  fares  and  freights  which 
are  to  be  adopted  for  the  operation  of  the  work;  and 

5.  Statistical  data  as  to  the  probable  business  of  the  road  which  it 
is  proposed  to  construct,  so  as  to  be  able  to  judge  of  the  advantages 
to  be  derived  from  its  construction. 

The  preliminary  plans  shall  be  drawn  subject  to  the  existing  instruc- 
tions or  those  ordered  for  the  purpose  by  the  General  Direction  of 
Public,  Works,  Commerce,  and  Mines. 

ART.  3.  When  the  initiative  to  include  a  line  in  the  plan  comes  from 
the  Government,  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  order  that  the 

23 


24 

preliminary  project  to  which  the  preceding  article  refers  be  drawn  by 
the  Engineer  or  a  Board  of  Road,  Canal,  and  Port  Engineers,  which 
may  be  for  the  purpose  designated,  the  General  Direction  of  Public 
Works,  Commerce,  and  Mines  issuing  the  special  instructions  which 
may  be  considered  proper. 

The  said  initiative  may  come  also  from  a  Municipal  Council,  Provin- 
cial Deputation,  or  any  other  official  corporation,  and  also  from  individ- 
uals or  companies  who  are  interested  in  the  construction  of  the  line,  as 
provided  for  in  Article  28  of  the  Law.  In  this  case  the  interested  cor- 
porations or  individuals  shall  present  to  the  Department  of  Public 
Works  a  petition  accompanied  by  the  preliminary  plan  and  the  docu- 
ments referred  to  in  the  preceding  article. 

In  all  cases  where  the  declaration  of  general  service  is  asked  for,  the 
petition  shall  be  published  in  the  Gazette  and  official  Bulletins  of 
the  proper  Provinces,  granting  a  month  for  the  presentation  of  peti- 
tions by  other  private  corporations  or  companies  which  may  ask  the 
same  declaration  in  their  favor.  Those  wishing  to  make  use  of  this  right 
shall  present  their  petition  within  the  time  fixed,  accompanying  it  with 
the  proper  preliminary  plan,  in  order  that  the  proceedings  provided  for 
by  Article  29  may  be  followed. 

ART.  4.  The  preliminary  plan  or  plans  admitted  shall  be  submitted  in 
the  report  provided  for  by  Article  28  of  the  Law,  to  which  these  Regu- 
lations refer,  and  the  tenth  of  the  Regulations  for  the  construction  of 
Public  Works. 

After  this  formality  has  been  complied  with  the  papers  shall  pass  to 
the  Consulting  Board  of  Roads,  Canals,  and  Ports  for  report  as  to  the 
technical  part  of  the  work,  as  well  as  to  the  propriety  of  the  declara- 
tion of  general  service  and  as  to  which  of  the  petitions  should  be 
preferred. 

ART.  5.  In  view  of  the  results  of  the  proceedings  mentioned  in  the 
preceding  articles,  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  decide  as  to 
the  propriety  of  the  declaration  requested  and  as  to  the  preliminary 
plan  which  should  be  preferred.  If  the  decision  be  in  the  negative,  the 
matter  shall  be  considered  ended  without  further  action,  returning  the 
preliminary  plan  or  plans,  as  the  case  may  be,  to  the  corporations  or 
individuals  who  may  have  presented  them.  If  the  decision  be  favora- 
ble, the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  present  to  the  Cortes  the 
proper  form  of  Law,  accompanied  by  all  the  documents  relative  to 
the  report  and  the  preliminary  plan  which  shall  have  deserved  the 
preference. 

The  law  having  been  promulgated,  the  line  shall  be  declared  of  gen- 
eral service,  being  included  in  the  general  plan  of  railroads  of  this  class, 
and  considered  as  of  public  utility  for  the  purposes  of  the  law  of  eminent 
domain,  all  in  conformity  with  Articles  5,  6,  and  7  of  the  Special  Law 
of  Railroads. 

ART.  6.  When  the  declaration  of  general  service  shall  be  asked  for 


25 

in  favor  of  a  line  devoted  to  the  operation  of  coal  or  iron  veins,  the  pro- 
ceedings indicated  in  Articles  2  to  5  of  the  present  Regulations  shall 
be  followed;  but  to  the  report,  referred  to  in  Article  4,  shall  be  added 
another  of  an  expert,  in  which  the  engineers  of  the  branch  and  the 
Superior  Expert  Board  shall  be  heard  as  to  the  importance  of  said 
mineral  veins,  as  provided  for  in  Article  8  of  the  Law. 

A  similar  procedure  shall  always  be  followed  when  it  is  a  question  of 
projected  branches  or  important  industrial  centers,  hearing  in  these 
cases  the  Deputations  and  the  Boards  of  Agriculture  of  the  interested 
Provinces  and  the  Council  of  Agriculture,  Industry,  and  Commerce. 

CHAPTER  II. 

CONSTRUCTION    OF   RAILROADS   BY   THE    STATE. 

ART.  7.  Whenever  the  Government  shall  consider  it  necessary  or 
proper  to  proceed  with  the  construction  of  a  railroad  declared  of  gen- 
eral service,  with  State  funds,  and  by  administrative  methods  or  by 
the  usual  contract,  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  appoint  an 
Engineer,  or  a  Board  of  Road,  Canal,  and  Port  Engineers,  who  shall 
make  the  proper  plans  according  to  the  provisions  of  Article  57  of  the 
Railroad  Law. 

The  Engineer  or  Board  appointed  for  the  purpose  shall,  above  all, 
make  an  estimate  of  the  expenses  occasioned  by  the  plans,  according 
to  Article  4  of  the  Regulations  for  the  execution  of  the  Law  of  Public 
Works,  complying  with  what  is  prescribed  in  said  article  as  to  the 
approval  of  the  estimate. 

ART.  8.  The  documents  which  shall  constitute  all  railroad  plans 
which  the  Government  may  order  drawn  shall  be  those  stated  in  Arti- 
cle 6  of  the  Regulations  for  the  execution  of  the  General  Law  of  Pub- 
lic Works,  and  shall  be  drafted  according  to  the  following  provisions: 

1.  The  memorial  shall  include  the  description  of  the  line  and  of  the 
works  of  greater  importance,  the  number,  class,  and  situations  of  the 
stations,  and  a  plan  of  the  laying  out  of  the  lines  and  levels,  with  a 
statement  of  the  curves  of  the  lines. 

2.  A  general  plan  and  longitudinal  profile  of  the  line,  as  well  as  the 
plans  and  profiles  by  sections,  and  in  case  of  buildings  included  in  the 
project  there  shall  be  added  all  the  necessary  details  and  notes  to  give 
a  complete  idea  of  the  plan. 

3.  In  the  document  of  conditions  a  description  of  the  works  shall  be 
made,  and  the  requisites  shall  be  stated  which  the  materials  employed 
in  said  work  must  have,  as  well  as  everything  relating  to  manual  labor 
and  employment  in  the  works. 

4.  The  estimate  shall  contain  the  details  of  cubic  measurement,  the 
prices  of  the  work  to  be  done,  and  other  facts  necessary  to  show  the 
total  cost  of  the  railroad. 

All  these  documents  shall  be  drawn  according  to  the  forms  used  for 


26 

drafting  railroad  plans,  or  according  to  those  provided  for  in  the  future, 
as  well  as  those  general  rules  of  the  service  and  special  instructions 
which  the  General  Direction  of  Public  Works,  Commerce,  and  Mines 
may  deem  it  proper  to  order. 

ART.  9.  To  the  said  documents  mentioned  in  the  previous  article, 
which  are  those  constituting  the  plan  in  its  technical  part,  the  following 
shall  be  added : 

1.  A  detailed  statement  of  the  material  which  may  be  necessary  for 
the  construction  and  operation  of  the  railroad. 

2.  A  detailed  schedule  of  the  maximum  passenger  and  freight  rates, 
with  instructions  giving  the  proper  rules  for  the  application  of  the 
schedule. 

3.  Statistical  facts  as  to  the  probable  business  of  the  proposed  rail- 
road, calculating,  in  view  of  such  facts  and  the  application  of  the 
schedule,  what  profits  shall  accrue  from  the  construction  of  the  work. 

For  drafting  these  documents  the  existing  provisions,  or  those 
ordered  in  the  future  for  the  purpose  by  the  proper  General  Direction, 
shall  be  tafcen  into  account. 

The  plan  shall  also  be  accompanied  by  the  document  of  special  and 
economic  conditions  referred  to  in  No.  3  of  Article  17  of  the  Regula- 
tions of  the  6th  of  July,  1877,  and  should  contain  all  the  provisions 
therein  stated. 

ART.  10.  In  case  the  province  or  towns  interested  in  the  construction 
of  a  railroad  shall  oblige  themselves  to  help  the  State,  sharing  with  it 
the  cost  of  construction,  there  shall  be  added  to  the  papers  the  memo- 
randa in  which  the  obligations  contracted  by  the  said  corporations 
shall  be  formally  stated,  with  the  specifications  of  the  aid  offered  and 
the  time  when  it  shall  be  paid  to  the  Government. 

ART.  11.  The  Secretary  of  Public  Works  may  submit  for  the  report 
of  the  Corporations  which  he  may  deem  competent  the  plan  and  docu- 
ments referred  to  in  the  previous  articles,  but  on  condition  of  always 
hearing  the  Consulting  Board  of  lioads,  Canals,  and  Ports. 

These  formalities  being  complied  with,  the  plan  may  be  approved  by 
the  Government. 

ART.  12.  The  plan  of  a  railroad  having  been  approved,  the  proper 
form  of  law  shall  be  presented  to  the  Cortes,  asking  authorization  for 
the  construction  of  the  line,  as  provided  for  in  Article  10  of  the  Law 
of  November  23,  1877.  Said  legislative  authorization  having  been 
obtained  and  funds  having  been  appropriated  for  the  purpose,  the  con- 
struction of  the  line  shall  be  proceeded  with  according  to  the  plan  and 
the  technical  economic  conditions  annexed  to  it,  and  according  to  the 
provisions  of  Articles  14  to  17  of  the  Regulations  for  the  execution  of 
the  General  Law  of  Public  Works,  the  towns  and  provinces  interested, 
in  the  proper  case,  being  obliged  to  pay  the  State  the  aid  which  they 
may  have  offered. 

ART.  13.  The  construction  of  a  line  being  finished,  it  shall  be  deter- 


27 

mined  by  the  Government  if  the  operation  of  a  railroad  shall  be  by  the 
State  or  by  contract,  in  view  of  the  provisions  for  such  cases  of  Article 
27  of  the  General  Law  of  Public  Works  of  April  13,  1877,  and  53  of 
the  Law  of  November  23,  of  the  same  year.  If  the  work  is  to  be  by 
contract,  the  contractor  shall  receive  the  earnings  according  to  the 
schedules  approved  for  the  use  and  operation  of  the  railroad,  during 
the  time  which  shall  be  stipulated,  and  shall  deliver  every  year  to  the 
State  a  sum  as  compensation  for  the  expenses  incurred  in  the  construc- 
tion of  the  line. 

The  contracts  shall  always  be  made  by  public  bids,  which  shall  refer 
to  the  most  advantageous  annual  payment  to  be  made,  as  provided  for 
in  the  last  paragraph. 

ART.  14.  For  the  lease  of  the  operation  of  a  railroad  constructed  by 
the  State,  the  proper  document  of  conditions  shall  be  carried  out  which 
shall  be  approved  by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  after  hearing  the 
Consulting  Board  of  Roads,  Canals,  and  Ports. 

In  the  said  document  there  shall  be  stated: 

1.  The  annual  sum  to  be  paid  by  the  contractor,  which  is  to  serve  as 
the  basis  for  the  bids; 

2.  The  number  of  years  during  which  the  contractor  is  to  enjoy  the 
receipts  of  the  earnings  fixed  in  the  schedule; 

3.  The  rolling  stock  which  is  to  be  used  in  the  operation,  whenever 
it  is  stipulated  that  the  stock  is  to  be  paid  for  by  the  contractor  and 
not  by  the  State; 

4.  That  the  maintenance  and  repair  of  the  works  of  all  kinds  and  of 
the  rolling  stock  shall  be  at  the  expense  of  the  contractor  during  the 
term  of  the  contract ; 

5.  That  the  contractor  is  bound  not  to  interrupt  the  service  unless 
by  reason  of  force  majeure,  and  to  deliver  the  road  in  good  condition 
for  service  at  the  expiration  of  the  contract,  a  similar  declaration,  if 
deemed  proper,  being  made  as  to  the  rolling  stock; 

G.  The  causes  for  rescission  of  the  contract,  and  the  consequences  of 
that  rescission ;  and 

7.  All  the  other  provisions  considered  proper,  as  provided  for  in 
such  cases  by  Article  54  of  the  Regulations  of  the  6th  of  July,  for  the 
execution  of  the  General  Law  of  Public  Works  and  in  Article  28  of 
the  same  Regulations  in  cases  of  concession. 

CHAPTER  III. 

CONSTRUCTION  AND  OPERATION  OF  RAILROADS  BY  CONCESSIONS  TO 
INDIVIDUALS  OR  COMPANIES  WITHOUT  SUBSIDY  OR  AID  OF  PUBLIC 

FUNDS. 

ART.  15.  The  lines  of  general  service,  the  plans  of  which  may  have 
been  studied  by  the  Government,  may  be  constructed  by  granting  con- 
cessions to  individuals  or  companies,  in  conformity  with  the  provisions 
of  the  General  Law  of  Public  Works  and  Chapters  2  and  3  of  the 


28 

Regulations  for  its  execution,  according  to  whether  the  lines  be  con- 
structed without  any  aid  whatsoever,  or  with  the  subsidies  mentioned 
in  the  law  of  railroads  of  Xovember  23,  1877. 

In  the  construction  of  a  railroad  by  concession,  the  general  conditions 
fixed  or  which  may  in  the  future  be  fixed  shall  govern,  as  well  as  the 
technical  conditions  forming  part  of  the  plan  and  the  special  and  eco- 
nomic conditions  which  may  be  stipulated  in  each  case.  Those  condi- 
tions undetermined  in  the  general  ones,  shall  be  made  special;  also  the 
schedule  rates,  the  dates  on  which  the  work  is  to  begin  and  end,  the 
amount  of  bond  to  be  given,  and  the  other  special  clauses  which  may 
be  determined  on  for  the  granting  of  the  concession. 

ART.  16.  The  study  of  a  line  declared  of  general  service  may  be  made 
by  individuals  or  companies,  provided  these  shall  petition  and  obtain 
the  superior  authorization  which  is  required  for  that  purpose  by  Article 
58  of  the  Law  of  November  23, 1877. 

The  authorization  shall  be  granted  with  the  formalities  stated  in 
Article  59  of  the  same  Law,  and  in  21  of  the  Regulations  of  the  Gen- 
eral Law  of  Public  Works. 

The  plans  which  may  be  presented  by  individuals  shall  consist  of  the 
same  documents,  and  be  drafted  in  the  same  form,  as  those  mentioned 
in  Articles  8  and  9  of  the  present  Regulations  for  Railroads  constructed 
on  account  of  the  State. 

ART.  17.  The  individuals  or  companies  who  ask  for  a  concession 
of  a  line  declared  of  general  service,  without  subsidy,  shall  present 
to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  a  petition,  accompanied  by  the  com- 
plete plan  of  the  road,  drawn  according  to  the  provisions  of  the  pre- 
vious article,  and  by  the  document  showing  that  the  deposit  of  one  per 
cent  of  the  amount  of  the  estimate  has  been  made.  The  plan  being 
presented,  the  petition  shall  be  published  in  the  Gaceta  de  Madrid  and 
in  the  official  Bulletins  of  the  interested  Provinces,  granting  a  time  of 
thirty  days,  which  can  not  be  extended,  for  the  admission  of  other 
petitions  for  concessions  which  may  be  better  than  the  one  presented, 
according  to  the  provisions  of  Article  64  of  the  General  Law  of  Public 
Works. 

ART.  18.  If  the  time  fixed  in  the  previous  article  has  elapsed,  and  no 
other  new  plan  has  been  submitted,  that  of  the  petitioner  shall  be  sent 
to  the  Engineer  in  Chief  of  the  proper  Division,  so  that  he  may  com- 
pare it  on  the  ground  and  report  as  to  the  plan  of  the  line.  The  expense 
of  the  comparison  shall  be  borne  by  the  petitioner,  who  must  deposit 
the  amount  in  the  Provincial  Treasury,  as  is  provided  for  in  Article 
24  of  the  Regulations  for  the  execution  of  the  General  Law  of  Public 
Works. 

After  the  project  has  been  returned  by  the  Engineer  in  Chief,  it  shall 
be  submitted  for  the  report  provided  for  in  Article  24,  and  afterwards 
passed  to  the  Consulting  Board  of  Roads,  Canals,  and  Ports,  whose 
opinion  shall  not  only  refer  to  the  technical  part  of  the  plan  but  also 


29 

to  the  examination  of  the  proposed  schedules  and  other  circumstances, 
which  are  to  be  taken  into  consideration  in  granting  the  concession,  as 
stated  in  Article  26  of  said  Regulations. 

ART.  19.  If,  after  all  the  steps  are  taken,  it  be  necessary  or  advis- 
able to  modify  the  plan,  either  in  its  technical  or  economic  part,  or  in 
the  conditions  under  which  the  concession  is  to  be  made,  it  shall  be 
returned  to  the  petitioner  for  him  to  make  the  proper  corrections  within 
the  time  fixed  for  the  purpose,  or  for  him  to  withdraw  his  petition  if  it 
be  not  convenient  for  him  to  modify  his  plan. 

When  the  interested  party  shall  not  be  satisfied  with  what  is  finally 
decided  by  the  Government  as  to  the  points  in  controversy,  the  plan 
shall  be  considered  abandoned,  and  shall  be  returned  to  the  petitioner, 
together  with  the  deposit  which  may  have  been  made. 

AKT.  20.  In  the  case  to  which  the  preceding  articles  refer,  namely, 
when  it  is  a  question  of  a  petition  for  a  concession  without  subsidy, 
and  for  which  only  one  proposition  shall  have  been  presented,  said  con- 
cession shall  be  granted  without  the  formalities  of  public  auction ;  but 
always  by  means  of  a  Law,  as  provided  for  in  Article  27  of  the  Law  of 
Railroads. 

To  this  end  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  present  to  the  Cortes 
the  proper  form  of  Law,  accompanied  by  all  the  documents  mentioned 
in  Article  25  of  the  Law  of  November  23, 1877,  and  in  the  correspond- 
ing articles  of  these  Regulations. 

ART.  21.  The  law  to  which  the  preceding  article  refers  being  passed, 
and  the  bond  of  3  per  cent  of  the  amount  of  the  estimate  being  depos- 
ited within  the  time  fixed  by  Article  16  of  the  Law  of  Railroads,  there 
shall  be  issued  to  the  interested  party,  or  to  the  company  which  may 
have  solicited  the  concession,  the  proper  instrument,  making  the  con- 
tract a  public  document,  and  including  in  it,  verbatim,  the  document 
of  general  conditions,  the  special  law  of  concession,  the  special  and 
economic  conditions,  and  schedule  of  maximum  rates. 

During  the  number  of  years  fixed  by  the  law  of  concession,  which 
shall  not  exceed  ninety-nine,  the  owner  of  the  concession  may  operate 
the  road  and  enjoy  the  privileges  and  exemptions  mentioned  in  Chap- 
ter IV  of  the  Law  of  Railroads,  as  well  as  the  right  to  seize  by  eminent 
domain,  according  to  existing  provisions,  the  lands  and  buildings 
necessary  for  the  construction  of  the  work. 

ART.  22.  The  owner  of  the  concession  shall  proceed  in  the  construc- 
tion of  the  work  according  to  the  conditions  of  the  concession,  and  under 
the  inspection  which  appertains  to  the  Government  agents,  as  deter- 
mined by  the  General  Law  of  Public  Works  and  Article  40  of  the 
Regulations  of  July  6,  1877. 

During  the  construction  no  changes  or  modifications  may  be  intro- 
duced which  shall  not  have  been  duly  authorized,  after  reports  of  the 
Engineers  in  charge  of  the  inspection  and  supervision  of  the  works  and 
the  opinion  of  the  Consulting  Board  of  Roads,  Canals,  and  Ports. 


30 

Tbe  bond  of  3  per  cent  shall  not  be  returned  to  the  owner  of  the 
concession  until  he  shall  show  that  he  has  work  completed  of  a  value 
equivalent  to  a  third  of  the  amount  of  that  embraced  by  the  conces- 
sion, as  provided  for  in  Article  17  of  the  Law  of  November  23,  1877. 

ART.  23.  The  work  being  all  concluded,  the  owner  of  the  concession 
shall  make,  at  his  own  expense,  with  the  assistance  of  the  Government 
Engineers,  the  survey  and  detailed  plan  of  the  railroad  and  all  its 
appurtenances,  drawing  also  a  descriptive  plan  of  the  stations,  bridges, 
buildings,  and  constructions  which  may  have  been  made. 

Of  each  of  the  documents  and  plans  mentioned  in  the  preceding 
paragraph,  and  of  the  notes  of  the  survey,  a  copy  properly  legalized 
shall  be  delivered  by  the  owner  of  the  concession  to  the  General  Direc- 
tion of  Public  Works  during  the  first  year  of  the  operation  of  the  line 
or  section  of  the  line  to  which  they  refer. 

ART.  24.  A  railroad,  or  part  of  it,  shall  not  be  placed  in  operation 
without  the  authorization  of  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  after  re- 
port on  the  examination  of  the  work  and  construction  material,  drafted 
by  the  Government  Engineers  charged  with  the  inspection,  and  in  which 
it  shall  be  declared  that  the  railroad  may  be  open  to  the  public.  Said 
report  shall  be  sent  to  the  Government  by  the  Governor  of  the  proper 
Province,  with  his  own  report. 

ART.  25.  The  companies  owning  concessions  shall  operate  the  rail- 
roads during  the  years  fixed  by  their  concessions  in  conformity  with 
the  approved  schedule  and  according  to  the  conditions  which  may  have 
been  stipulated  for  its  application. 

The  said  companies  shall  draft  the  necessary  Eegulations  for  the 
good  service,  administration,  and  operation  of  their  lines,  submitting 
the  Regulations  to  the  approval  of  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  when 
they  affect  the  safety  of  the  operation  or  the  relations  of  the  public  to 
the  companies. 

The  owners  of  the  concessions  are  at  liberty  to  choose,  without  any 
other  restrictions  than  those  imposed  by  existing  provisions,  the  per- 
sonnel of  all  classes  for  the  construction  and  operation  of  the  lines,  as 
well  as  the  organization  of  this  personnel,  and  everything  pertaining 
to  the  internal  government  of  the  companies. 

The  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  exercise  through  his  agents  the 
inspection  and  supervision  which  belongs  to  him  by  law,  not  only  as  to 
the  expert,  but  also  as  to  the  administrative  supervision,  the  companies 
owning  concessions  complying  with  the  orders  which  the  said  agents 
shall  communicate  to  them  within  the  scope  of  their  authority  and 
according  to  the  provisions  in  such  cases. 

ART.  26.  The  companies  shall  be  obliged  to  keep  in  good  condition 
the  railroad  and  its  appurtenances,  so  that  travel  may  be  constant, 
easy,  and  safe.  All  the  expenses  for  maintenance  and  repairs,  ordinary 
as  well  as  extraordinary,  shall  be  defrayed  by  the  companies. 

The  railroads  shall  be  considered  and  cared  for  like  other  public 


Ffl 


31 

roads,  and  the  trackmen  who  shall  be  named  by  the  companies  owning 
concessions  may  use  the  same  arms  and  enjoy  the  same  privileges  as 
the  road  repairers  (peones  camineros)  of  the  highways  of  the  State.  In 
order  that  the  said  trackmen  may  be  entitled  to  claim  these  privileges, 
they  must  wear  the  badge  agreed  on  by  the  companies,  which  they  are 
to  use  while  performing  their  duties. 

ART.  27.  Whenever  the  Government  may  consider  it  proper  to  revise 
the  schedule  in  conformity  with  the  right  which  is  given  it  by  Article 
49  of  the  Law,  it  shall  proceed,  whatever  may  be  the  change  intended, 
to  an  investigation,  in  which  there  must  be  heard  without  fail  the  com- 
pany owning  the  concession,  or  the  Board  of  Agriculture,  Manufactures, 
and  Commerce  of  the  Provinces  traversed  by  the  Kailroad,  or  the  Dep- 
utations of  the  same,  the  Engineer  in  Chief  of  the  Division,  the  Govern- 
ors, the  Consulting  Board  of  Roads,  and  the  Superior  Council  of  Agri- 
culture. 

After  the  investigation  has  been  concluded  there  shall  be  ordered, 
in  a  proper  case,  by  means  of  a  Royal  Decree  the  reduction  to  be  made 
in  the  schedules;  and,  if  the  company  owning  the  concession  does  not 
consent  to  the  reduction,  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  submit 
to  the  Cortes  the  proper  form  of  Law  to  carry  the  reduction  into  effect, 
and  to  determine  the  means  for  guaranteeing  to  the  owner  of  the  con- 
cession, the  earnings  of  the  year  precedin-g  the  revision  and  the  pro- 
gressive increase  of  the  receipts,  which  the  railroad  may  have  had  in 
the  five  years  which  terminated  with  said  year. 

ART.  28.  Besides  the  cases  of  forfeiture  provided  for  in  Article  36  of 
the  Eailroad  Law,  there  shall  be  also  those  determined  by  the  Special 
Law  of  concession,  and  by  Article  61  of  the  General  Law  of  Public 
Works. 

ART.  29.  For  the  purposes  of  Article  36  of  the  Law,  the  following 
shall  be  considered  cases  of  force  majeure : 

1.  Floods  or  rising  of  rivers  whenever  they  are  greater  than  those 
that  by  tradition,  or  in  any  other  trustworthy  manner,  are  known  to 
have  occurred  in  more  or  less  distant  epochs. 

2.  Fires  occasioned  by  the  electricity  of  the  atmosphere. 

3.  Epidemics. 

4.  Earthquakes. 

5.  The  sinking  of  the  earth  and  landslides,  where  the  work  is  con- 
structed or  to  be  constructed,  as  well  as  the  breaking  off  of  great  blocks 
or  masses  of  mountains,  or  extraordinary  suowslides. 

6.  The  destruction  caused  in  time  of  war  by  belligerent  forces  or 
those  occasioned  by  sedition  of  the  people. 

7.  Robbery  by  mobs  and  violent  destruction.     And 

8.  In  general  those  extraordinary  accidents,  the  effects  of  which  are 
evidently  irresistible. 

ART.  30.  Whenever  the  owner  of  a  concession  shall  ask  for  an  exten- 
sion to  finish  the  works  of  his  concession,  based  on  damages  produced 


32 

by  an  unforeseen  accident,  he  shall  address  himself  to  the  Secretary  of 
Public  Works  within  the  period  of  twenty  days,  which  can  not  be 
extended,  counted  from  the  date  of  the  occurrence,  stating  the  damages 
which  have  occurred  or  injuries  occasioned,  the  causes  to  which  they 
may  be  attributed,  the  means  employed  to  avoid  the  damages,  and  the 
time  which,  in  his  judgment,  shall  be  required  for  the  repairs. 

After  hearing  the  Chief  Engineer  of  the  Division  to  which  the  line 
belongs  and  the  Kailroad  Section  of  the  Consulting  Council,  the  Secre- 
tary of  Public  Works  shall  draft  an  interrogatory,  so  that  it  shall  serve 
as  a  basis  for  the  investigation  to  be  made  of  the  fact. 

In  this  investigation  the  Provincial  Deputations,  the  Municipal 
Councils  of  towns  in  which  the  damage  may  have  occurred,  the  Chief 
Engineers  of  the  same  Province  and  that  of  the  proper  Kailroad  Div- 
ision shall  be  heard. 

The  proper  Governors  shall  direct  the  investigation  in  whatsoever 
refers  to  their  Provinces,  and  after  it  has  been  concluded  the  paper 
shall  be  sent  with  their  report  to  the  General  Direction  of  Public  Works, 
Commerce,  and  Mines. 

The  said  papers  shall  afterwards  pass  to  the  Consulting  Board  ot 
Eoads,  Canals,  and  Ports,  so  that  it  may  report  as  to  the  declaration 
of  unavoidable  accident  and  as  to  the  petition  of  extension  made  by  the 
owner  of  the  concession. 

The  full  Council  of  State  shall  finally  be  heard  in  conformity  with 
the  provisions  contained  in  paragraph  1  of  Article  36  of  the  Law  of 
Eailroads. 

ART.  31.  The  provisions  of  the  preceding  article  having  been  com- 
plied with,  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  may  extend  the  time  fixed 
in  the  Law  of  Concessions,  bearing  in  mind  the  provisions  of  said 
Article  36  of  the  Law. 

Similar  proceedings  shall  be  instituted  when  the  owner  of  the  conces- 
sion shall  desire  to  avoid  forfeiture  because  of  the  total  or  partial  inter- 
ruption in  the  operation  of  the  railroad  by  reason  of  unavoidable  acci- 
dent or  of  force  majeurej  the  request  in  such  case  shall  be  passed  upon 
by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works. 

ART.  32.  The  proceedings  for  forfeiture  of  a  concession  may  be  com- 
menced by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  on  his  own  initiative,  or  by 
virtue  of  an  appeal  of  the  Chief  Engineer  of  the  Division,  the  Deputa 
tion,  the  Board  of  Agriculture,  Manufactures,  and  Commerce  of  any  of 
the  interested  Provinces,  or  the  Governors  of  the  same. 

The  official  or  corporation  which  may  consider  that  there  is  a  case  of 
forfeiture,  shall  address  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  in  a  memorial, 
giving  the  reason  on  which  the  appeal  is  based.  This  petition  shall  be 
passed  to  the  owner  of  the  concession,  so  that  he  may  answer  the 
charges,  and  afterwards,  on  this  basis,  an  investigation  shall  be  made 
by  the  Governors  of  the  interested  Provinces  in  which  the  authorities 
and  corporations  mentioned  in  the  first  paragraph  of  the  present  article 


33 

shall  be  heard,  and,  lastly,  said  authorities  shall  submit  the  result  of 
their  investigation  to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works. 

The  papers  shall  again  be  passed  to  the  owner  of  the  concession,  fix- 
ing a  time,  which  can  not  exceed  thirty  days,  for  him  to  state  whatever 
he  may  consider  best  in  his  defense,  after  which  the  Consulting  Board 
of  Roads,  Canals,  and  Ports,  and  the  full  Council  of  State  shall  be 
heard. 

In  view  of  the  report,  if  it  be  proper,  the  forfeiture  shall  be  declared 
by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works.  The  owner  of  the  concession  may 
appeal  from  this  decision,  according  to  the  provisions  of  Article  34  of 
the  Law  of  Eailroads. 

ART.  33.  The  consequences  of  the  delaration  of  forfeiture  of  a  rail- 
road line  shall  be  those  specified  in  Articles  37  to  41,  inclusive,  of  the 
Law  of  Railroads. 

When  a  concession  is  finally  declared  forfeited,  in  order  that  the  said 
provisions  shall  take  effect,  the  Engineers  of  the  State  appointed  by 
the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  and  the  experts  appointed  by  the  conces- 
sionaire shall  proceed  to  the  contradictory  survey  and  valuation  of  the 
work  constructed  in  the  line,  the  material  collected  for  the  same,  the 
rolling  stock  devoted  to  its  operation,  as  well  as  all  kinds  of  buildings 
and  appurtenances.  The  survey  and  valuation  shall  be  adjusted  to  the 
rates  of  the  estimate  which  accompanied  the  plan  of  the  road,  and  a 
memorial  explaining  the  operations  made  shall  be  added,  stating  the 
condition  of  the  work  and  material  at  the  time  the  appraisal  is  made, 
and  the  real  value,  if  they  have  suffered  any  damage  by  reason  of  age 
or  wear,  or  by  defects  of  construction,  as  well  as  the  plans  of  the  road, 
and  of  all  kinds  of  buildings  and  work.  Should  any  difference  of 
opinion  about  the  appraisal  exist  between  the  State  Engineers  and  the 
representatives  of  the  company,  each  part  shall  make  a  separate  report, 
stating  the  facts  about  which  there  is  any  difference  and  the  grounds 
thereof. 

The  opinion  of  the  Consulting  Board  of  Roads,  Canals,  and  Ports 
shall  be  heard  afterwards,  as  to  the  survey  and  valuation,  and  as  to 
the  claims  of  the  interested  party,  in  the  proper  case. 

ART.  34.  The  valuation  of  the  works  and  materials,  made  in  confor- 
mity with  the  provisions  of  the  preceding  article,  and  duly  approved 
afterwards  by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  shall  serve  as  the  basis 
for  the  application  of  Articles  37  to  41  of  the  Law. 

From  the  final  amount  of  the  appraisal,  the  bond,  or  part  of  it, 
returned,  at  the  time  of  the  declaration  of  forfeiture,  to  the  owner  of 
the  concession,  shall  be  deducted,  according  to  Article  69  of  the  Gen- 
eral Law  of  Public  Works,  and  Article  35  of  the  Special  Law  of  Rail- 
roads. The  expenses  of  the  appraisal  shall  also  be  deducted,  and  the 
remainder  shall  be  the  basis  for  the  auction  referred  to  in  the  articles 
mentioned  of  the  said  general  law. 
2512 3 


34 

ART.  35.  At  the  expiration  of  the  time  of  the  concession  the  Gov- 
ernment shall  take  the  place  of  the  company  owning  the  concession, 
with  all  the  rights  of  property  to  the  lands  and  work  mentioned  in  the 
said  statement  or  plan,  referred  to  in  Article  23  of  these  Eegulations, 
and  shall  immediately  enter  into  possession  of  the  railroad,  together 
with  all  its  appurtenances  and  earnings. 

The  company  shall  be  obliged  to  deliver,  in  good  condition  for  service, 
the  railroad  and  its  appurtenances,  such  as  stations,  wharves,  stores, 
at  the  starting  and  terminal  points,  guard  and  watch  houses,  offices,  etc. 

It  shall  also  be  obliged  to  deliver,  in  good  condition  for  service,  the 
rolling  stock  in  the  minimum  amount  determined  by  the  special  condi- 
tions of  the  concession. 

ART.  36.  Two  years  before  the  legal  termination  of  the  concession 
the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  appoint  an  Engineer  or  a  Commis- 
sion of  Engineers  to  make  the  general  examination  of  the  line  and  of 
all  its  dependencies,  as  well  as  of  the  rolling  stock  of  all  kinds  and 
other  material  which  the  owner  of  the  concession  is  to  deliver  to  the 
State,  according  to  the  preceding  article.  The  Secretary  of  Public 
Works  shall  be  immediately  advised  of  this  examination  and  in  view 
thereof  shall  order  whatever  is  necessary,  so  that  the  work,  building 
materials,  and  other  appurtenances  shall  be  in  good  condition  on  the 
day  when  the  owner  of  the  concession  is  to  make  the  delivery.  If  the 
owner  of  the  concession  refuses  to  obey  the  orders  communicated  to 
him,  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  order  their  execution  at  the 
expense  of  the  company,  even  if  for  that  purpose  it  shall  be  necessary 
to  attach  the  earnings  of  the  railroad. 

ART.  37.  On  the  day  of  the  expiration  of  a  concession,  the  com- 
pany owning  the  concession  shall  make  formal  delivery  of  the  road,  its 
material  and  appurtenances,  according  to  the  stipulated  condition,  to 
whomsoever  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  appoint,  with  a 
detailed  inventory,  and  according  to  the  special  instructions  in  the 
premises.  A  memorandum  of  the  delivery  shall  be  drafted  and  signed 
by  the  representative  of  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  and  the  con- 
cessionaire. The  document  shall  be  forwarded  to  the  Secretary  of 
Public  Works,  without  whose  approval  the  delivery  shall  not  be  con- 
sidered valid.  Said  approval  shall  only  be  given  after  hearing  the 
Consulting  Board  of  Koads,  Canals,  and  Ports. 

ART.  38.  The  memorandum  of  delivery  being  approved,  the  road, 
with  all  its  appurtenances  and  material,  shall  pass  into  full  possession 
of  the  State,  its  operation  being  carried  on  at  the  expense  of  the  State 
and  under  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works. 

If  the  Government  should  decide  that  the  operation  is  to  be  made  by 
contract,  the  provisions  of  Articles  13  and  14  of  these  Regulations  shall 
be  followed,  the  company  whose  concession  has  terminated  being  pre- 
ferred on  equal  conditions,  if  the  said  company  shall  see  fit  to  make 
use  of  the  right  conferred  upon  it  by  this  article. 


35 

ART.  39.  If,  within  the  time  fixed  in  Article  17  of  the  present  Regu- 
lations, one  or  more  petitions  for  concessions  have  been  submitted,  an 
examination  on  the  ground  stated  in  Article  18  shall  be  made  of  each 
plan  admitted,  as  well  as  the  investigation  provided  for  in  Article  24  of 
the  Regulations  of  the  General  Law  of  Public  Works.  This  investi- 
gation shall  be  enlarged  so  as  to  compare  the  plans  submitted,  in  order 
to  ascertain  if  any  one  deserves  the  preference. 

The  Consulting  Board  of  Eoads,  Canals,  and  Ports,  and  the  Depart- 
ment of  the  Interior  of  the  Council  of  State,  shall  then  make  a  report 
thereon  of  the  preference  to  be  given  to  one  of  the  plans  in  competition, 
being  determined  by  a  Eoyal  Decree,  so  as  to  grant  the  concession 
requested  to  its  author,  and  to  return  the  plans  as  well  as  the  corre- 
sponding deposits  to  the  individuals  or  corporations  which  presented 
the  same. 

The  proper  Law  having  been  promulgated,  according  to  the  provi- 
sions of  Article  20  of  these  Regulations,  the  subscriber  of  the  accepted 
proposal  shall  be  declared  the  owner  of  the  concession,  after  he  has 
made  the  deposit  of  the  bond  of  3  per  cent  of  the  estimate,  within 
fifteen  days,  counting  from  the  date  in  which  the\  order  granting  the 
right  is  communicated  to  him. 

ART.  40.  If  it  be  found  from  the  investigations,  in  the  opinion  of  the 
Secretary  of  Public  Works,  that  among  the  best  propositions  of  peti- 
tion for  the  concession  of  a  railroad  line,  there  is  an  equality  of  condi- 
tions in  two  or  more  of  the  said  propositions,  the  concessions  shall  be 
made  after  the  bidding  at  a  public  auction,  in  which  the  first  plan  pre- 
sented shall  serve  as  a  basis,  provided  its  author  shall  be  satisfied  with 
the  changes  he  may  have  had  to  make  according  to  the  provisions  of 
Article  19  of  these  Regulations.  ^ 

If  he  should  fail  to  agree,  the  plan  which  is  to  serve  as  a  basis  for 
the  auction  shall  be  designated,  according  to  the  provisions  for  such 
cases  of  Article  34  of  the  Regulations  of  the  General  Law  of  Public 
Works. 

ART.  41.  The  plan  which  is  to  serve  as  a  basis  for  the  bidding  being 
determined,  and  before  presenting  to  the  Cortes  the  form  of  Law  of  the 
concession,  an  appraisal  of  the  plan  shall  be  made,  complying  in  all 
respects  with  the  provisions  of  Article  35  of  the  Regulations  for  the 
execution  of  the  General  Law  of  Public  Works. 

This  formality  being  complied  with  and  the  law  of  concession  being 
promulgated,  the  auction  shall  be  advertised  for  three  months.  At 
the  auction  not  only  the  subscribers  to  the  proposals  presented  and 
admitted  may  participate,  but  all  those  who  may  desire  to  do  so  and 
show  a  certificate  of  having  deposited  1  per  cent  of  the  amount  of  the 
estimate  made. 

The  proceedings  to  be  followed  at  the  auction  shall  be  the  same  as 
those  provided  for  in  Articles  36,  37,  and  38  of  the  Regulations  of  the 
General  Law  of  Public  Works,  the  concession  being  declared  granted 


36 

to  the  bidder  offering  the  best  terms,  with  the  understanding  that  the 
subscriber  of  the  plan  which  has  served  as  a  basis  for  the  auction  is  to 
have  the  right  to  collect  from  the  auction  sale  the  value  of  the  said 
plan. 

ART.  42.  The  concession  being  approved,  the  owner  of  the  concession 
shall  deposit  within  fifteen  days  from  the  date  on  which  the  decision 
of  the  auction  shall  be  communicated  to  him  the  bond  of  3  per  cent  of 
the  amount  of  the  estimate  which  served  as  a  basis  for  the  auction.  To 
this  end  the  proper  communication  shall  be  personally  delivered  to 
him;  a  receipt  shall  be  exacted,  in  which  the  date  of  its  delivery  shall 
be  stated. 

In  case  the  author  of  the  plan  which  has  served  as  a  basis  for  the 
auction  should  not  be  the  owner  of  the  concession,  he  shall  prove  by  a 
trustworthy  document,  within  a  month  from  the  date  mentioned  in  the 
preceding  paragraph,  that  he  has  paid  the  author  of  the  said  plan  the 
amount  of  the  appraisal  to  which  paragraph  1  of  the  preceding  article 
of  these  Regulations  refers. 

ART.  43.  The  party  obtaining  the  concession  of  a  railroad  line  in  any 
of  the  cases  and  terms  provided  for  in  Articles  39  and  41  of  these  Regu- 
lations shall  have  the  obligations  and  shall  enjoy  the  rights  which  are 
stated  in  the  existing  Laws  for  concession  of  works  without  subsidies, 
and,  finally,  in  the  construction  of  the  works  and  in  the  operation  of 
the  railroad  there  shall  be  observed,  as  to  the  concession,  the  provi- 
sions of  Articles  22  to  37  of  these  Eegulations. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

CONSTRUCTION  AND   OPERATION   OF  A  RAILROAD   BY  CONCESSION  TO 
INDIVIDUALS  OR  COMPANIES   SUBSIDIZED  WITH  PUBLIC  FUNDS. 

ART.  44.  When  the  Government  itself  shall  have  made  the  plans  of 
a  railroad  line  in  the  terms  provided  for  in  Articles  7  to  9  of  these 
Eegulations,  and  shall  deem  it  proper  to  have  it  constructed  by  conces- 
sion, granting  a  subsidy  in  any  of  the  forms  stated  in  Article  12  of  the 
Law  of  Eailroads,  a  hearing  shall  be  had  as  to  the  plan  and  as  to  the 
necessity  of  a  subsidy  and  its  nature  and  amount,  the  Provincial  Dep- 
utations, the  Boards  of  Agriculture  of  the  interested  Provinces,  and 
the  Governors  being  heard.  The  Consulting  Board  shall  report,  and 
after  this  formality  is  complied  with,  and  in  view  of  the  result  of  the 
hearing,  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  submit  to  the  Cortes  the 
proper  form  of  Law,  in  which  there  shall  be  stated  the  clauses  of  the  con- 
cession, the  schedule  according  to  which  it  shall  be  operated,  the  num- 
ber of  years  which  the  concession  is  to  last,  the  aid  to  be  given  to  the 
owner  of  the  concession,  the  form  and  time  of  paying  the  subsidy,  and 
the  other  requisites  provided  for  by  the  Laws  and  Eegulations. 

In  the  same  form  of  Law  there  shall  be  fixed  the  proportion  and  form 
in  which,  together  with  the  State,  the  province  and  towns  interested 


37 

in  the  line  are  to  contribute  to  the  subsidy  granted,  according  to  the 
provisions  of  Article  13  of  the  Law  of  .Railroads. 

ART.  45.  The  law  of  concession  being  sanctioned  and  promulgated, 
the  line  shall  be  offered  at  auction  within  a  period  of  three  months. 

The  public  sale  shall  be  held  according  to  the  existing  instructions, 
and  in  order  to  take  part  in  it  the  bidders  must  deposit  beforehand,  at 
the  place  designated  by  the  advertisement,  a  sum  equal  to  1  per  cent 
of  the  amount  of  the  estimate  approved. 

The  subsidy  fixed  shall  serve  as  a  basis  for  the  auction,  and  the 
object  of  the  proposals  shall  be  the  reduction  of  the  said  subsidy. 

ART.  4G.  If  the  subsidy  consists  of  the  delivery  to  the  company  of 
certain  works  constructed  at  the  expense  of  the  State  and  according  to 
the  provisions  of  Articles  7  to  12  of  these  Regulations,  the  bidding 
shall  be  first  on  the  reduction  of  the  schedules,  the  auction  being  held 
according  to  paragraph  3  of  Article  36  of  the  Regulations  of  the  Gen- 
eral Law  of  Public  Works. 

If  there  be*two  or  more  of  the  most  advantageous  propositions  appar- 
ently equal,  new  bids  shall  be  required,  as  provided  for  in  Article  37  of 
said  Regulations;  and  if  none  of  the  interested  parties  make  any  propo- 
sition whatsoever  in  this  new  bidding,  he  who  shall  have  obtained  the 
lowest  number  in  the  drawing  by  lot,  which  shall  have  preceded  the 
openiug  of  the  proposals  in  the  first  bid,  shall  be  declared  the  best 
bidder. 

The  record  of  the  auction  being  made  and  it  being  approved  by  the 
Secretary  of  Public  Works,  he  who  shall  appear  as  the  best  bidder  in 
the  first  or  second  bids  referred  to  in  the  previous  articles  shall  be 
declared  the  owner  of  the  concession. 

ART.  47.  If  the  subsidy  consists  of  the  delivery  to  the  company  of  a 
part  of  the  invested  capital,  which  part  is  to  be  fixed  exactly  in  the 
law  of  concession,  the  auction  shall  be  first  on  the  reduction  of  the 
amount  of  the  subsidy,  and  afterwards,  in  case  of  equality  of  proposals, 
on  the  reduction  of  the  schedules;  and  if  there  still  be  equality  of 
proposals,  on  the  number  of  years  of  the  concession,  all  in  strict  accord- 
ance with  the  provisions  for  such  cases  of  Articles  43  and  44  of  the 
Regulations  of  the  General  Laws  of  Public  Works. 

ART.  48.  In  the  third  and  fourth  cases  of  Article  12  of  the  Law  of 
Railroads,  namely,  when  the  subsidy  consists  in  granting  the  constructor 
of  the  line  the  right  to  take  advantage  of  other  works  constructed  for 
public  use,  compatible  with  the  use  of  the  railroads,  or  in  the  exemption 
of  the  duties  on  material  of  construction  or  operation,  the  auction  shall 
be,  in  the  first  place,  on  the  reduction  of  the  schedules,  and  then  on  the 
reduction  of  the  number  of  years  of  .the  concession,  proceeding  in  all 
matters  according  to  the  provisions  of  Article  46  of  these  Regulations. 

ART.  49.  The  owner  of  the  concession  shall  deliver  at  the  proper 
place  and  at  the  time  fixed  in  Article  16  of  the  Law  of  Railroads  a  bond 
equivalent  to  5  per  cent  of  the  estimate  approved;  the  said  amount 


38 

shall  not  be  returned  until  all  the  works  included  in  the  concession 
shall  have  been  entirely  liuished.  The  bond  being  given,  the  construc- 
tion of  the  works  shall  be  proceeded  with  according  to  the  clauses  and 
conditions  of  the  concession. 

ART.  50.  If  the  subsidy  consists  of  works  already  constructed  by 
the  Government,  they  shall  be  delivered  to  the  owner  of  the  concession 
after  making  an  inventory  and  appraisal  of  them,  which  shall  be 
inserted  in  the  proper  record,  the  owner  of  the  concession  signing  the 
receipt  therefor. 

If  the  aid  consists  of  the  delivery  of  a  sum  in  .specie  or  bonds  and 
stocks,  it  shall  be  paid  to  the  company  in  the  form  and  time  stipulated, 
always  on  a  certificate  of  the  Engineers  of  the  State  charged  with  the 
inspection.  The  payment  of  the  subsidies  in  these  cases  shall  be  made 
to  the  company  by  the  Government  directly,  and  the  Government  in  its 
turn  shall  be  paid  by  the  provinces  and  the  towns  the  part  of  the  sub- 
sidy devolving  upon  them,  as  determined  by  the  Law. 

When  any  public  work  compatible  with  the  use  of  the*railroad  is  to 
be  delivered  to  the  company  owning  the  concession,  the  delivery  shall 
be  made  with  the  formalities  stated  in  the  first  paragraph  of  this 
article. 

If  the  subsidy  consists  of  the  exemption  of  customs  duties,  the  for- 
malities determined  in  the  existing  provisions  or  those  provided  in  the 
future  by  the  proper  Law  or  Regulations  shall  be  complied  with. 

ART.  51.  The  concession  of  a  railroad,  to  which  a  subsidy  has  been 
granted,  shall  be  forfeited  in  the  cases  provided  for  by  the  General 
Law  of  Public  Works  and'by  the  Law  of  Eailroads. 

Exception  shall  be  made  in  the  cases  of  force  majeure,  set  forth  in 
Article  29  of  these  Eegulations,  which  must  be  proven  in  accordance 
with  Article  49  of  the  General  Law  of  Public  Works. 

In  case  of  forfeiture,  from  the  appraisal  which  must  be  made  in  accord- 
ance with  the  provisions  of  Articles  33  and  34  of  these  Regulations, 
there  shall  be  deducted  the  amount  of  the  bond,  if  it  should  have  been 
returned,  the  expenses  of  the  appraisement  and  auction,  and  the  lands, 
works,  money,  or  other  things  of  value  which  may  have  been  delivered 
to  the  owner  of  the  concession.  The  remainder  shall  be  the  amount  for 
which  the  completed  works  and  the  materials  on  hand  shall  be  sold  at 
auction. 

The  provisions  of  the  Law  and  the  corresponding  articles  of  these 
Regulations  shall  be  followed  in  all  other  proceedings  for  the  purpose 
of  declaration  of  forfeiture  and  its  consequences. 

ART.  52.  In  the  execution  of  the  work  the  owner  of  the  concession 
shall  confine  himself  to  the  approved  plan,  in  which  no  variations  or 
modifications  may  be  introduced,  without  the  proceedings  specified  in 
Article  22  of  these  Regulations.  In  such  case  the  consequences  of  the 
variations  authorized  shall  be  those  designated  in  Article  19  of  the 
Railroad  Law. 


39 

In  the  execution  of  the  work  and  in  the  operation  of  a  subsidized 
line,  the  provisions  of  Articles  23  to  27  of  these  Regulations  shall  be 
observed  concerning  the  plans  and  documents  which  must  be  made 
on  the  completion  of  the  work,  the  necessity  of  authorization  to  begin 
the  operation  of  the  road,  the  privileges  and  obligations  of  the  owner 
of  the  concession  in  its  operation,  and  the  formalities  necessary  for  a 
revision  of  a  schedule  of  rates. 

In  like  manner  the  provisions  of  Articles  35,  36,  and  37  concerning 
the  formalities  with  which  the  railroad  shall  be  delivered  at  the  termi- 
nation of  the  concession  shall  be  observed. 

ART.  53.  When  an  individual,  or  a  company,  desires  the  concession  of 
a  railroad  with  a  subsidy,  he  shall  direct  the  proper  petition  to  the  Sec- 
retary of  Public  Works,  accompanying  the  plan,  in  accordance  with 
Articles  8  and  9,  and  proving  that  the  deposit  of  1  per  cent  of  the 
estimate  has  been  made. 

In  the  petition  there  shall  appear  the  kind  of  subsidy  prayed  for, 
stating  its  amount  and  the  form  in  which  it  shall  be  made,  with  a  full 
argument,  in  order  to  prove  the  necessity  or  desirability  of  the  aid 
which  is  asked  for. 

ART.  54.  When  the  documents  referred  to  in  the  preceding  article 
have  been  received,  there  shall  be  published  in  the  Gaceta  de  Madrid 
and  in  the  official  bulletins  of  the  interested  Provinces  the  proper 
advertisements,  fixing  a  period  of  thirty  days  for  the  admission  of  pro- 
posals which  might  be  more  advantageous  than  the  first. 

If  the  time  fixed  should  pass  and  no  proposal  whatever  be  made, 
or  if  those  presented  should  not  be  admissible,  because  of  the  absence 
of  certain  of  the  requirements  of  the  Law  or  of  these  Regulations,  the 
plans  shall  be  forwarded  to  the  Chief  Engineer  of  the  proper  Division, 
in  order  that  he  may  actually  go  over  the  ground  and  make  the  report 
referred  to  in  Article  18. 

Thereon  the  proceedings  provided  for  by  Article  44  shall  be  insti- 
tuted, and  as  a  result  of  the  same  the  approval  of  the  superior  authori- 
ties may  be  given  to  the  plan  and  other  documents. 

In  case  that  it  should  be  deemed  necessary  to  introduce  any  modifi- 
cations in  the  plan  or  in  any  of  the  clauses  of  the  concession,  the  pro- 
visions made  for  such  cases  by  Article  19  of  these  Regulations  shall  be 
observed. 

ART.  55.  When  the  plan  is  approved  and  when  the  basis  of  the  con- 
cession is  agreed  upon,  the  appraisal  of  the  studies  shall  be  made, 
which  shall  be  done  in  accordance  with  Article  35  of  the  Regulations  for 
the  execution  of  the  General  Law  of  Public  Works. 

ART.  56.  The  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  present  to  the  Cortes 
the  proper  form  of  Law  in  order  that  the  construction  of  the  railroad 
may  be  authorized. 

The  said  proposed  Law  shall  be  accompanied  by  the  plan  approved 
for  the  line  in  question  with  all  the  other  documents  necessary  to  deter- 


40 

mine  the  basis  of  the  concession,  the  schedule  of  rates,  the  kind  and 
form  of  the  subsidy  which  the  State  shall  give,  the  part  which  shall  be 
contributed  by  the  interested  Provinces  or  Municipalities,  and  the 
other  requisites  which  are  demanded  by  the  Laws  and  Eegulations. 

When  the  Law  is  promulgated,  the  concession  shall  be  offered  at 
auction  during  a  period  of  three  months,  as  provided  for  by  Article  45 
of  these  Eegulations ;  in  such  case  it  must  be  stated  that  the  author  of 
the  plan  proposed  has  a  right  to  the  concession  on  the  same  terms  as 
the  highest  bidder,  and  also  that  otherwise  he  shall  be  paid  by  the 
person  to  whom  the  concession  is  granted  the  expenses  of  his  plan,  in 
accordance  with  the  appraisal  made,  in  relation  to  which  the  provisions 
of  Article  42  of  the  Eegulations  for  the  execution  of  the  General  Law 
of  Public  Works  shall  be  observed. 

The  proceedings,  rules,  and  prescriptions  contained  in  Articles  46  to 
52  of  these  Regulations,  referring  to  the  case  in  which  the  petition  for 
the  construction  should  have  emanated  from  the  Government,  are 
applicable  in  all  respects  to  the  case  in  hand;  that  is,  to  the  construc- 
tion by  means  of  a  concession  of  a  subsidized  railroad  on  the  request 
of  an  individual  or  company. 

ART.  57.  If  within  the  time  fixed  by  Article  54  admissible  proposals 
should  have  been  presented  for  the  construction  of  a  railroad,  the  pro- 
visions of  the  same,  concerning  going  over  the  plans  on  the  ground 
and  the  proceedings  which  must  be  had  thereunder,  shall  be  extended 
to  them  and  to  the  corresponding  plans.  The  Engineer  in  Chief  as 
well  as  those  reporting  shall  make  the  comparison  in  their  decisions 
of  the  various  plans  presented,  giving  their  opinion  concerning  the 
order  of  preference  in  which  they  should  be  considered. 

Thereafter  the  opinion  of  the  Consulting  Board  of  Eoads,  Canals, 
and  Ports,  and  of  the  Department  of  Public  Works  of  the  Council  of 
State,  shall  be  taken  concerning  all  matters  involved  in  the  proceed- 
ings, and  as  a  result  of  all  this  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall 
decide  which  plan  should  be  selected;  then  proceeding  to  its  appraisal 
in  the  manner  provided  for  in  analogous  cases  by  these  Eegulations. 

The  other  plans  shall  be  returned  to  the  authors  with  the  deposits 
they  made  on  presenting  them. 

ART.  58.  In  case  the  first  plan  and  any  other  of  those  thereafter  pre- 
sented should  be  equally  favorable,  the  first  shall  have  preference  and 
its  project  shall  be  the  one  appraised  and  shall  serve  as  the  bams  of  the 
concession. 

When  two  or  more  of  the  proposals  made  after  the  first  shall  be 
equal,  the  one  which  was  first  presented  shall  have  the  preference,  and 
its  project  shall  be  the  one  appraised  and  shall  serve  as  the  basis  of 
the  concession. 

The  provisions  of  Article  23  of  the  Eegulations  for  the  execution  of 
the  General  Law  of  Public  Works  shall  be  strictly  observed  in  such 
cases,  to  prevent  all  doubt  concerning  the  date  of  the  presentation  of 
such  plans. 


41 

ART.  59.  When  the  plan  which  is  to  serve  as  a  basis  for  the  conces- 
sion, determined  by  either  of  the  means  indicated  in  the  two  preceding 
articles,  according  to  the  circumstances,  shall  have  been  appraised,  the 
proper  form  of  Law  shall  be  presented  to  the  Cortes,  and  concerning 
the  auction  or  auctions,  construction  or  operation,  and  delivery  of  the 
road,  in  cases  where  there  is  a  subsidy,  the  provisions  of  Articles  45  to 
52  of  these  Regulations  shall  be  observed. 

CHAPTER  V. 

INSPECTION   AND   SURVEILLANCE    OF   RAILROADS. 

ART.  60.  The  direction  regarding  the  construction,  operation,  and 
police  supervision  of  the  railroads  appertains  to  the  Secretary  of  Public 
Works,  as  well  as  the  surveillance  which  he  shall  exercise  over  them, 
in  accordance  with  Articles  60  and  61  of  the  Bail  road  Law,  and  they 
shall  take  their  course  in  compliance  with  the  special  instructions  which 
now  govern  or  which  may  hereafter  be  adopted,  in  accordance  with  the 
principles  laid  down  in  these  Regulations. 

ART.  61.  The  inspection  which  the  Government  should  exercise  over 
railroads  is  ^divided  into  technical  or  expert  and  administrative  or 
business  inspection.  Both  classes  of  inspection  shall  be  conducted  by 
officers  under  the  authority  of  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  who  may 
order  that  the  personnel  of  whatever  kind  assigned  to  the  inspection 
shall  depend  on  the  Chief  Engineer  of  the  Division,  or  that  the  expert 
and  administrative  inspections  shall  be  made  by  officials  independent 
of  each  other. 

ART.  62.  The  expenses  of  the  inspection  shall  be  defrayed  by  the 
State  or  by  the  railroad  companies,  according  to  the  stipulations  in  the 
clauses  of  the  concession  of  each  line. 

In  case  the  companies  should  be  obliged  to  pay  all  or  part  of  the 
above-mentioned  expenses  the  payment  shall  be  made  directly  by  the 
State.  The  sums  which  for  this  purpose  are  paid  by  the  companies 
should  be  credited  to  the  proper  items  of  the  appropriation. 

ART.  63.  The  expert  inspection  shall  also  be  considered  divided  into 
two  parts,  namely,  first,  that  which  should  be  made  of  the  construction, 
line  and  works,  and  technical  operation ;  and,  second,  that  which  should 
be  made  of  the  material  and  traction. 

Everything  referring  to  the  study,  comparison  and  examination  of 
the  plans,  to  the  construction  of  the  lines,  preservation  and  repair  of 
the  work,  roadway,  fixed  material  and  buildings,  to  the  surveillance  of 
the  line,  of  the  signals  and  switches,  and  to  the  makeup  and  velocity 
of  the  trains,  shall  be  considered  as  appertaining  to  the  first  division. 

The  second  division  shall  include  everything  in  connection  with  the 
preservation  and  repair  of  the  rolling  stock. 

ART.  64.  The  expert  inspection  shall  be  made  by  Engineers  of  the 
Board  of  Roads,  Canals,  and  Ports,  aided  by  mechanical  engineers, 


42 

when  the  Government  may  deem  it  proper,  by  assistants  from  among 
the  subordinate  employees  of  Public  Works,  and  by  watchmen  who  ful- 
fill the  requirements  of  these  Eegulations. 

ART.  65.  The  expert  inspection  shall  be  made  in  each  of  the  Divi- 
sions created,  or  to  be  created  in  the  future,  by  a  Chief  Engineer  in 
charge  of  the  employees  mentioned  in  the  previous  article,  in  case  this 
service  should  be  separated  from  the  management.  The  mechanical 
engineers  serving  in  the  Divisions,  shall  be  especially  in  charge  of  the 
preservation  and  repair  of  the  rolling  stock,  discharging  their  duties 
under  the  orders  of  the  Engineers  of  the  proper  Divisions. 

ART.  66.  The  expert  officers  who  make  the  technical  inspection  shall 
be  appointed  by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  in  the  same  manner  as 
those  serving  in  the  Department  of  Public  Works.  Mechanical  engi- 
neers shall  be  appointed  in  like  manner.  Watchmen  serving  under  the 
expert  inspectors  shall  be  appointed  from  the  list  of  retired  soldiers 
who  may  have  served  in  expert  corps  or  in  the  civil  guards  (guardia 
civil),  provided  they  receive  recommendations  for  good  behavior  in 
their  discharge  papers. 

Employees  of  this  class  shall  not  be  removed  from  the  service,  except 
for  malfeasance  or  misfeasance  committed  therein,  after  proceedings 
instituted  in  accordance  with  the  rules  established  for  that  purpose. 

ART.  67.  All  that  concerns  the  business  operation,  the  relations 
between  the  public  and  employees  of  the  company  engaged  in  that 
branch,  to  the  jurisdiction  and  supervision  which  the  Government 
should  exercise  over  these  employees,  and  the  safety  of  travel,  in  case 
of  attempt  to  wreck  the  trains,  or  in  case  of  public  disturbances,  is  under 
the  charge  of  the  administrative  inspection  of  railroads. 

ART.  68.  The  employees  of  the  Administrative  Inspection  shall  con- 
sist of  Chief  Inspectors,  Special  Inspectors,  and  Commissaries,  whose 
number  and  salaries  shall  be  fixed  in  the  appropriation  bills,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  necessities  of  the  service. 

ART.  69.  The  employees  connected  with  the  Administrative  Inspec- 
tion shall  be  appointed  by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  in  accordance 
with  the  present  provisions,  or  with  those  that  shall  in  the  future  be 
adopted,  of  the  Laws  and  Special  Instructions  in  this  connection. 

Said  employees  shall  have  accurate  knowledge  of  the  General  Laws 
of  Railroads,  of  their  conditions  and  schedules  of  rates  under  the  Law, 
and  the  police  Eegulations  of  the  same,  and  such  directions  as  may 
have  been  issued  by  the  Government  and  by  the  companies  concerning 
the  telegraph  service  and  the  business  operations  of  the  lines. 

ART.  70.  Inspectors  and  Assistant  Inspectors  in  charge  of  the  admin- 
istrative inspection  of  railroads  can  not  be  removed  except  through 
malfeasance  and  misfeasance  in  office,  and  after  the  proper  proceedings 
in  accordance  with  the  rules  established  for  this  purpose. 


43 


CHAPTER  VI. 

RAILROADS   DEVOTED   TO   PRIVATE   USE. 

ART.  71.  Eailroads  devoted  to  the  service  of  an  industry  or  to  pri- 
vate use,  for  the  construction  of  which  the  use  of  public  lands  is  not 
required  nor  condemnation  proceedings  desired,  may  be  built  without 
any  other  formality  than  a  notification  to  the  Superior  Civil  authority 
of  the  proper  Province,  and  may  be  thereafter  operated  without  any 
other  restrictions  than  those  imposed  by  the  Health  Laws  and  Laws 
for  the  Public  Safety,  in  the  manner  determined  by  Article  62  of  the 
Railroad  Law. 

ART.  72.  When  an  individual  or  company  desires  to  build  a  railroad 
line  for  the  service  of  a  private  industry,  and  needs  for  that  purpose 
the  use  of  public  lands,  the  interested  party  shall  present  to  the  Secre- 
tary of  Public  Works  a  petition  accompanied  by  the  proper  plan. 

This  plan  shall  only  be  in  the  nature  of  a  memorial  explaining  it  and 
a  description  of  the  route,  a  general  plan  and  a  general  profile,  the 
particulars  of  the  public  lands  traversed  by  the  line,  the  plans  and 
grades  of  the  construction  proposed  for  said  lands,  and  the  approxi- 
mate estimate  of  the  cost  of  these  works. 

ART.  73.  The  papers  mentioned  in  the  preceding  article  shall  be  sent 
to  the  Governor  of  the  proper  Province,  who  shall  open  the  investiga- 
tion concerning  these  works  as  prescribed  by  Article  67  of  the  Railroad 
Law.  The  Governor  shall  hear  in  this  proceeding  the  Municipal  Coun- 
cils of  the  towns  traversed  by  the  line,  the  Provincial  Deputation,  and 
the  Chief  Engioeer  of  the  Province.  Said  official  shall  then  send  the 
papers,  with  his  report,  to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  who,  by 
means  of  a  Eoyal  Decree,  may  grant  the  authority  asked  for  after  hear- 
ing the  Consulting  Board  of  Eoads,  Canals,  and  Ports. 

When  the  authority  is  granted,  the  petitioner  may  construct  and 
operate  the  road  without  other  restrictions  than  those  imposed  by  the 
public  health  and  public  security  and  the  conditions  which  may  have 
been  imposed  in  the  order  granting  the  authority  for  the  use  of  public 
property  which  may  have  been  issued. 

Before  beginning  the  work  the  interested  party  shall  give  security 
equivalent  to  5  per  cent  of  the  estimated  cost  of  the  work  to  be  con- 
structed on  public  lands,  which  security  shall  be  returned  to  him  when 
he  proves  that  he  has  fulfilled  his  obligations. 

ART.  74.  The  part  taken  by  the  administrative  agents  in  the  conces- 
sions referred  to  in  the  two  preceding  articles  shall  be  limited  to  seeing 
that  the  exact  conditions  imposed  for  the  building  of  the  work  to  be 
undertaken  on  public  lands  granted  to  the  owner  of  the  concession  are 
fulfilled. 

Authorizations  of  this  kind  shall  be  revoked  if  the  owner  of  the  con- 
cession should  not  absolutely  fulfill  the  stipulations  of  the  order  grant- " 
ing  the  concession;  in  such  case  the  work  done  on  the  public  lands 


44 

shall  be  destroyed  and  all  material  removed,  in  order  that  such  lands 
may  be  clear  and  in  the  same  condition  as  they  were  before  the  grant- 
ing of  the  concession. 

The  owner  of  the  concession  may  appeal  in  an  action  against  the 
Eoyal  Decree  of  revocation,  but  when  the  latter  is  affirmed  he  shall 
lose  the  security  given,  and  the  lands  granted  shall  again  be  public 
property. 

ART.  75.  For  the  construction  of  all  railroads  devoted  to  public  serv- 
ice, although  not  of  general  interest,  and  for  the  construction  of  all 
those  which,  although  devoted  to  a  private  industry  or  to  private  use, 
may  be  used  by  the  public,  the  use  of  the  public  domain  may  be  asked 
for,  and  also  the  right  of  condemnation  of  private  lands,  as  provided  in 
Article  G4  of  the  Eailroad  Law. 

In  such  cases  the  company,  individual,  or  interested  party  shall  direct 
to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  a  petition,  accompanied  by  a  plan  of 
the  line,  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  Articles  8  and  9  of  these 
Eegulations. 

The  documents  constituting  the  plan  shall  be  annexed  to  those  which 
the  petitioner  considers  pertinent  to  prove  the  necessity  of  condemna- 
tion and  to  a  list  showing  the  municipal  districts  of  the  property  own- 
ers whose  estates  should  be  occupied. 

ART.  76.  The  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  send  to  the  Governor 
of  the  proper  Province  the  plan  and  documents  mentioned  in  the  pre- 
ceding article,  so  that  he  may  institute  the  investigation  prescribed  by 
law.  This  investigation  shall  treat  simultaneously  of  the  consideration 
of  the  occupation  of  public  property  and  of  the  desirability  of  the  dec- 
laration of  public  utility. 

The  Governor  shall  announce  the  petition  in  the  Boletin  Oficial,  with 
a  list  of  the  names  of  those  interested  in  the  condemnation,  and  shall 
order  the  petitioner  to  re-mark  the  ground,  and  shall  also  hear  the 
claims  presented  before  the  proper  Mayor  (Alcalde)  by  the  property 
owners  or  their  representatives,  in  accordance  with  Article  156  of  the 
Eegulations  for  the  execution  of  the  General  Law  of  Public  Works. 

The  papers  shall  then  go  to  the  petitioner,  in  order  that  he  may  know 
and  answer  the  claims  presented,  and  the  Governor,  after  hearing  the 
Executive  Commission  of  the  Provincial  Deputations  and  the  Chief 
Engineer  of  the  Division,  shall  forward  the  proceedings,  with  his  own 
report,  to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works. 

ART.  77.  The  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  send  the  proceedings 
to  the  Consulting  Board  of  Eoads,  Canals,  and  Ports  for  report  on  the 
technical  part  of  the  plan,  as  well  as  on  the  claims  and  objections  that 
may  have  arisen,  and  in  order  that  the  basis  may  be  fixed  in  accord- 
ance with  which  the  concession  may  be  granted. 

The  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  with  all  these  antecedents,  shall  pre- 
sent to  the  Cortes  the  proper  form  of  Law,  in  accordance  with  Articles 
64  and  68  of  the  Eailroad  Law. 


45 

After  the  Law  is  sanctioned  and  promulgated,  the  concession  shall 
be  granted,  and,  therefore,  subject,  ipso  facto,  to  all  that  may  be  appli- 
cable to  the  provisions  of  Chapter  III  of  these  Eegulations,  concerning 
concessions  without  subsidy. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

FORMALITIES   REQUIRED   FOR   THE    CONCESSION   OF    TRAMWAYS. 

ART.  78.  No  tramway  or  railroad  established  on  a  public  highway 
may  be  constructed  without  its  proper  plan  being  made  and  approved 
beforehand. 

This  plan  shall  consist  of— 

1.  A  memorial  giving  a  description  of  the  tramway  and  showing  the 
advantages  which  would  redound  to  the  public  interest  by  its  con- 
struction. 

2.  A  general  plan,  showing  clearly  the  direction  of  the  route,  a  gen- 
eral profile  showing  its  grades,  and  the  corresponding  detailed  plan, 
giving  a  clear  idea  of  the  system  proposed  to  be  used  on  the  public 
highway  in  the  various  conditions  in  which  it  may  be.      If  towns  are 
traversed,  or  the  tramway  be  established  on  the  streets  of  the  town, 
plans  on  a  large  scale  shall  be  made  of  the  streets  traversed  by  the 
line,  and  its  position  and  relation  to  the  sidewalks  and  house  fronts. 

3.  The  technical  conditions  in  which  the  works  are  described  and 
details  relative  to  construction  are  given. 

4.  An  estimate. 

5.  And  the  schedule  of  rates  to  be  charged  in  the  operation  of  the 
tramway,  with  a  calculation  of  the  probable  earnings  of  the  company. 

ART.  79.  The  approval  of  the  plan  referred  to  in  the  preceding  arti- 
cle is  the  attribute  of  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works : — 

1.  When  the  proposed  tramway  shall  occupy  a  State  highroad. 

2.  When  it  shall  occupy  a  Provincial  highroad. 

3.  When  it  shall  occupy  in  part  a  State  highroad. 

4.  When  it  shall  occupy  in  part  a  State  highroad  and  in  part  a 
Municipal  road  or  street. 

5.  When  it  shall  occupy  both  a  Provincial  highroad  and  a  Munici- 
pal road  or  street. 

6.  When  the  motive  power  shall  be  other  than  that  of  draft  animals, 
whatever  may  be  the  kind  of  public  road  it  may  occupy. 

ART.  80.  The  approval  of  the  plan  of  tramways  is  the  attribute  of 
the  Governor  of  the  Provinces  when  their  entire  length  traverses 
Municipal  roads  or  streets. 

ART.  81.  Whenever  an  individual  or  company  may  desire  to  build  a 
tramway  of  those  designated  in  Article  79,  he  shall  address  his  petition 
to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  accompanied  by  the  plan  referred  to 
in  Article  78,  proving  that  he  has  deposited  an  amount  equivalent  to 
one  per  cent  of  the  estimated  cost. 


46 

Thereafter  the  petition  shall  be  advertised  in  the  Gaceta  and  Boletin 
Oficial  of  the  proper  Province,  fixing  one  month  for  the  admission  of 
petitions  which  may  be  better  than  the  first. 

ART.  82.  If  within  the  time  fixed  by  the  preceding  article  no  other 
plan  may  have  been  submitted,  that  presented  shall  go  to  the  Chief 
Engineer  of  the  Province,  so  that  he  may  go  over  the  plan  on  the 
ground  of  such  part  as  shall  occupy  a  State  highroad. 

Thereafter  it  shall  go  to  the  Deputation,  through  the  Governor,  in 
order  that  the  expert  Chief  of  Provincial  Works  may  also  go  over  the 
plan  on  the  ground  as  to  that  part  of  the  tramway  which  shall  occupy 
Provincial  highroads. 

And  lastly,  the  Governor  shall  send  the  plan  to  the  proper  Municipal 
Council  or  Councils,  so  that  the  proper  experts  may  go  over  it  on  the 
ground  as  to  such  part  of  the  work  which  may  occupy  Municipal  roads 
or  streets  within  each  Municipal  District. 

The  Chief  Engineer  and  the  Chief  Experts  of  Provincial  and  Munici- 
pal Public  Works,  who  shall  have  gone  over  the  plan  on  the  ground, 
shall  state  whether  the  data  presented  is  correct,  and  at  the  same  time 
shall  report  on  the  technical  parts,  stating  whether,  in  their  opinion,  the 
plan  as  presented  may  be  accepted,  or  if  there  should  be  a  necessity  of 
introducing  any  modifications. 

ART.  83.  When,  within  the  period  of  thirty  days,  designated  in  Arti- 
cle 81,  there  shall  have  been  presented  and  admitted  new  plans,  these 
shall  likewise  go  to  the  Engineers  of  the  State  and  Provincial  and 
Municipal  Expert  Chiefs  at  the  same  time  as  the  first  plan,  in  order 
that  all  may  be  gone  over  on  the  ground  in  the  manner  determined  by 
the  preceding  article. 

In  such  case  the  report  of  the  Expert  Chiefs  shall  extend  to  the  com- 
parison of  the  various  projects,  stating  whether  anyone  deserves  the 
preference,  and  the  reason  therefor. 

In  all  cases  the  expenses  of  going  over  the  plans  on  the  ground  shall 
be  paid  by  the  petitioner  or  petitioners  who  submitted  the  respective 
plans. 

ART.  84.  The  reports  mentioned  in  the  two  preceding  articles  shall 
be  directed  to  the  Governor  with  the  plans  they  refer  to,  and  when  these 
have  been  received  by  said  authority  he  shall  order  that  an  investiga- 
tion be  made,  as  determined  in  such  cases  by  the  General  Law  of  Public 
Works,  the  Regulations  for  carrying  it  into  effect,  and  Article  87  of 
these  Regulations. 

ART.  85.  When  a  tramway  which  is  to  occupy  a  State  highroad  only 
is  in  question,  the  Chief  Engineer  of  the  Province  and  the  Executive 
Commission  of  the  Provincial  Deputation  shall  be  heard  in  this  iuves- 
tigation,  and  the  Governor  shall  send  the  proceedings,  with  his  report, 
to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works. 

ART.  86.  When  only  Provincial  highroads  are  to  be  occupied,  the 
Provincial  Deputation  shall  be  consulted,  which  shall  make  its  report 


47 

after  hearing  the  expert  Director  of  the  Corporation;  thereafter  the 
Chief  Engineer  shall  make  his  report,  and,  lastly,  the  Governor  shall 
make  his,  on  sending  the  proceedings  to  his  superiors. 

When  the  works  are  to  occupy  both  State  and  Provincial  highroads, 
similar  proceedings  shall  be  followed,  adding  the  report  of  the  Execu- 
tive Commission,  which  shall  be  heard,  after  the  Chief  Engineer. 

ART.  87.  The  Municipal  Councils  of  the  towns  interested  shall  first 
be  heard,  if  the  tramway  shall  occupy  in  part  a  State  highroad  and  in 
part  a  Municipal  road  or  street.  A  public  investigation  shall  be  held  in 
said  towns  for  a  period  of  at  least  twenty  days,  at  which  all  the  resi- 
dents who  may  consider  themselves  interested  may  take  part,  stating 
what  they  may  deem  proper.  The  Municipal  Councils,  after  having 
first  consulted  the  opinion  of  the  expert  Chiefs,  shall  report.  There- 
upon the  petitioner  shall  be  heard,  in  order  that  he  may  answer  the 
claims  which  may  have  been  presented.  Thereafter  the  Chief  Engineer 
of  the  Province  shall  be  consulted  and  also  the  Executive  Commission 
of  the  Provincial  Deputation ;  and  the  Governor  shall  be  the  last  to 
report  on  sending  the  proceedings  to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works. 

ART.  88.  Whenever  both  a  Provincial  highroad  and  a  Municipal  road 
or  street  are  to  be  occupied,  the  interested  Municipal  Council  or  Coun- 
cils shall  first  be  heard,  as  provided  for  by  the  preceding  article,  and 
then  the  Provincial  Deputation,  which  shall  report  after  first  hearing 
the  opinion  of  its  expert  Director.  The  proceedings  shall  then  go  to  the 
petitioner  in  order  that  he  may  answer  the  objections  and  claims  which 
may  have  been  made;  and  after  this  formality  is  complied  with,  the 
Chief  Engineer  and  the  Executive  Commission  shall  report  their  opin- 
ions referring  to  the  legal  questions  which  might  have  arisen,  and  lastly, 
the  Governor,  who  shall  send  the  proceedings  to  the  Government. 

ART.  89.  When  a  road  in  which  the  motive  power  shall  be  steam  or 
compressed  air,  or  any  other  than  animal  power,  the  investigations 
referred  to  in  Articles  84  to  88  shall  take  place  according  to  the  specific 
case  in  compliance  with  the  rules  established  therefor,  embracing  in 
such  case  the  advantages  or  disadvantages  which  the  motive  power 
proposed  may  have,  and  to  the  conditions  which,  in  a  proper  case, 
should  be  imposed  to  prevent  the  damages  which  might  result  there- 
from to  public  travel. 

ART.  90.  When  the  plans  proposed  are  two  or  more  in  number  the 
investigations  shall  cover  all  of  them  simultaneously,  and  individuals, 
officials,'and  corporations  giving  information  shall  state  their  opinion 
as  to  which  deserves  the  preference.  In  such  case  the  petitioners  shall 
be  heard  in  the  investigation  in  the  inverse  order  of  the  presentation 
of  their  plans,  so  that  the  author  of  the  first  one  presented  shall  be  the 
last  one  heard,  care  being  taken  by  the  Governors  to  fix  the  shortest 
possible  time  for  the  petitioners  to  send  their  replies,  with  the  object  of 
shortening  the  proceedings. 

ART.  91.  In  all  the  cases  referred  to  in  the  preceding  articles,  after 


48 

the  proceedings  have  been  received  by  the  Department  of  Public 
Works,  they  shall  go  to  the  Consulting  Board  of  Roads,  Canals,  and 
Ports  for  its  report  concerning  the  technical  part  of  the  plan  or  plans 
proposed,  as  well  as  the  preference  which  shall  be  given  to  one  of  them, 
at  the  same  time  proposing  the  conditions  in  compliance  with  which,  in 
a  proper  case,  the  concession  may  be  granted. 

The  Secretary  of  Public  Works  shall  approve  the  plan  presented  in 
view  of  the  proceedings,  if  this  shall  be  proper,  or  the  one  meriting  the 
preference  among  those  accepted. 

If  from  the  proceedings  there  should  result  that  to  approve  the  plan 
it  should  be  necessary  to  introduce  some  modifications,  in  such  case  the 
provisions  of  Article  19  of  the  present  Regulations  shall  be  observed. 

ART.  92.  When  the  plan  of  tramway  shall  come  within  the  provisions 
mentioned  in  Article  73  of  the  Railroad  Law,  that  is  to  say,  when  the 
works  are  to  occupy  a  State  highroad  and  a  Provincial  highroad,  and 
finally  both  State  highroads  and  Municipal  roads  or  streets  after 
approval  of  the  plan  in  the  manner  prescribed  by  the  preceding  article, 
its  appraisal  shall  be  made  as  is  provided  for  analogous  cases  by  these 
Regulations. 

ART.  93.  The  Secretary  of  Public  Works  who  has  the  power  to  grant 
the  concession,  in  the  cases  specified  in  Article  73  of  the  Law,  shall 
immediately  advertise  the  auction  of  the  works,  for  the  period  of  two 
months,  on  the  basis  of  the  approved  plan. 

The  auction  shall  take  place  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  Arti- 
cle 76  of  said  Law,  respecting  the  schedules  of  rates,  the  equality  of 
propositions  as  to  the  duration  of  the  concession,  and  with  the  under- 
standing that  in  all  cases  the  right  of  legal  preference  shall  be  reserved 
at  the  auction  to  the  author  of  the  approved  plan,  and  if  the  latter 
should  not  take  advantage  of  the  preference  the  successful  bidder  shall 
pay  him,  within  one  month,  the  value  of  the  plan,  in  accordance  with  the 
appraisal  made. 

ART.  94.  If  from  the  investigations  to^be  made  there  should  appear 
an  equality  of  conditions  of  two  or  more  of  the  accepted  plans,  the  one 
first  presented  shall  have  the  preference,  and  in  this  case  it  shall  be 
appraised  and  shall  serve  as  the  basis  for  the  auction  prescribed  by  the 
preceding  articles. 

ART.  95.  When  the  auction  is  decided  the  declared  owner  of  the 
concession  shall  give,  within  a  period  of  fifteen  days,  security  equiv- 
alent to  5  per  cent  of  the  estimated  cost,  as  provided  for  by  the  law 
for  subsidized  railroads.  The  owner  of  the  concession  shall  build  the 
works  in  accordance  with  the  stipulations  and  under  the  inspection  and 
surveillance  of  the  State  Engineers  in  such  parts  as  are  occupied  by 
State  highroads.  In  such  part  as  the  tramway  occupies  Provincial 
highroads  the  inspection  shall  be  carried  on  by  the  expert  Directors  of 
Provincial  Works,  and  in  such  part  as  the  works  occupy  Municipal 
roads  or  streets  within  towns  the  inspection  shall  be  carried  on  by  the 
expert  agents  of  the  Municipality. 


49 

ART.  96.  When  the  concession  expires,  the  term  of  which  can  not 
be  for  longer  than  sixty  years,  according  to  Article  76  of  the  Eailroad 
Law,  the  Government,  the  Province,  or  the  towns  shall  enter  into  the 
enjoyment  and  use  of  the  part  of  the  tramway  built  in  State,  Province, 
or  Municipal  roads  or  streets,  respectively,  in  accordance  with  the 
special  rules  laid  down  in  each  case,  in  order  to  carry  out  the  operation 
and  sharing  of  the  earnings  among  the  interested  parties. 

ART.  07.  The  plans  and  grant  of  tramway  concessions,  in  which  the 
motive  power  is  other  than  animal,  shall  be  subject  to  the  same  pro- 
ceedings as  those  designated  in  the  preceding  articles,  in  which  case 
the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  may  always  approve  the  plans  and  per- 
mit the  individuals  or  companies  who  request  it  to  construct  these 
roads. 

ART.  98.  In  tramway  concessions,  made  by  the  Secretary  of  Public 
Works  in  the  manner  determined  by  the  Eailroad  Law,  all  the  pro- 
visions contained  in  Chapter  IV  of  these  Regulations  concerning  con- 
cessions of  subsidized  railroads,  shall  apply  in  so  far  as  they  are  prac- 
ticable and  do  not  conflict  with  the  provisions  of  the  preceding  articles. 

ART.  99.  If  the  tramway  is  to  occupy  oue  or  more  provincial  high- 
roads, after  the  approval  of  the  plan  by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works, 
in  compliance  with  Article  91,  it  shall  go  to  the  Governor,  in  order  that 
he  may  transmit  it  to  the  Provincial  Deputation,  which  has  the  right 
to  grant  the  concession  in  such  case,  as  provided  for  by  Article  74  of 
the  Law. 

The  same  shall  be  observed  in  the  case  of  the  occupation  of  both  Pro- 
vincial and  Muuicix>al  roads  or  streets,  when  the  Secretary  of  Public 
Works  shall  have  the  power  to  approve  the  plan,  and  the  Deputations 
the  power  to  grant  the  concession. 

ART.  100.  The  Deputation  shall  immediately  have  the  approved  plan 
appraised,  and  shall  then  advertise  the  auction,  proceeding  in  all  other 
matters  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  these  Regulations  and  of 
the  articles  which  may  be  applicable  of  Chapter  V  of  the  Regulations 
of  July  6,  1877,  which  treats  of  the  concessions  of  the  construction  of 
Provincial  works. 

ART.  101.  If  the  tramway  is  to  occupy  Municipal  roads  or  streets 
only,  the  petitioner  shall  send  his  plan,  accompanied  by  a  petition,  to 
the  Governor  of  the  Province,  who  in  this  case  has  the  right  of  approval, 
as  provided  for  by  Article  71  of  the  Railroad  Law.  The  Governor  shall 
order  the  publication  in  the  Boletm  Ojicial  of  the  proper  advertise- 
ment, fixing  a  period  of  thirty  days  within  which  to  present  proposals 
which  might  better  the  first. 

ART.  102.  The  plan  shall  then  be  sent  to  the  Mayor,  who  shall  order 
it  gone  over  on  the  ground  by  the  expert  Chief  -of  Municipal  Works, 
then  submitting  said  plan  to  a  public  investigation,  directed  by  the  said 
Mayor,  and  at  which  the  residents  of  the  town  who  deem  it  proper  to 
make  objections  and  claims  shall  be  heard,  for  which  purpose  a  time,  not 
less  than  twenty  days,  shall  be  fixed. 
2512 4 


50 

The  Mayor  shall  then  send  the  result  of  the  public  investigation  to 
the  petitioner  so  that  he  may  reply;  then  the  full  Municipal  Council 
shall  be  heard,  and  with  his  report  he  shall  finally  send  the  proceed- 
ings to  the  Governor. 

If,  within  the  period  of  the  thirty  days  mentioned  in  Article  101,  new 
plans  should  have  been  presented  and  accepted,  going  over  the  plans 
on  the  ground,  the  expert  report,  the  public  investigations,  and  the 
puplic  opinions  of  the  Municipal  Council  and  the  Mayor  shall  embrace 
all  the  plans  admitted,  and  also  concerning  the  preference  which,  as  a 
result  of  the  comparison  of  their  respective  advantages  or  disadvan- 
tages, one  deserves  over  all  the  others  competing. 

ART.  103.  The  Governor,  on  the  opinion  of  the  Provincial  Chief  Engi- 
neer, shall  decide  the  approval  of  the  plan.  When  he  considers  the 
work  of  great  importance,  or  when  he  disagrees  with  the  opinion  of 
the  Chief  Engineer,  he  shall  send  the  proceedings  with  his  own  report 
to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  who  shall  finally  decide  after  hear- 
ing the  Consulting  Board  of  Roads,  Canals,  and  Ports,  as  provided  for 
in  Article  93  of  the  Regulations  for  the  execution  of  the  General  Law  of 
Public  Works. 

ART.  104.  If  the  tramway  is  to  occupy  Municipal  highroads  or  streets 
within  a  single  Municipal  District,  in  which  case  the  Municipal  Coun- 
cils have  the  right  to  grant  concessions  in  accordance  with  Article  74 
of  the  Law,  the  Governor  shall  send  the  approved  plan  to  the  proper 
Municipal  Council,  which,  after  an  appraisal  of  said  plaii,  shall  adver- 
tise the  auction  and  grant  the  concession  in  accordance  with  the  pro- 
visions of  Chapter  VII  of  the  Eegulatious  of  the  6th  of  July  for  the 
execution  of  the  General  Law  of  Public  Works. 

ART.  105.  If  the  tramway  is  to  occupy  roads  or  streets  belonging  to 
more  than  one  Municipality,  but  within  one  Province,  the  plan  must  be 
separately  submitted  to  each  of  the  Municipal  Districts  it  traverses, 
and  in  each  of  the  towns  the  study  of  the  plans  on  the  ground  and  the 
investigations  referred  to  in  Article  102  of  these  Regulations  shall  be 
made. 

The  Governor  of  the  Province,  as  soon  as  he  has  gathered  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  interested  Municipalities,  shall  proceed  to  the  approval 
of  the  complete  plan  in  the  manner  provided  for  by  Article  103. 

ART.  IOC.  After  the  approval  of  the  plan  by  the  Governor  in  the 
case  stated  in  the  preceding  article,  the  proceedings  shall  go  to  the 
Provincial  Deputation,  which  in  such  case  has  the  right  to  grant  the 
concession,  as  provided  for  by  Article  74  of  the  Railroad  Law. 

ART.  107.  When  the  Municipal  highroads  which  the  tramway  is  to 
occupy  belong  to  Municipalities  of  different  Provinces,  the  investiga- 
tion and  the  other  proceedings  shall  be  carried  out  in  each  one  of  the 
Municipalities,  as  provided  for  by  Article  105,  and  the  Governors  shall 
have  to  come  to  an  agreement  in  all  points  before  proceeding  to  the 
approval  of  the  plan. 


51 

If  this  agreement  is  reached,  the  plan  shall  be  considered  approved 
and  the  concession  shall  be  granted  by  the  Deputations  of  the  respective 
Provinces. 

Should  the  Governors  differ  as  to  the  approval  of  the  plan,  the  mat- 
ter shall  be  decided  by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  to  whom  the 
proceedings  shall  be  forwarded  by  the  said  authorities.  The  Secretary 
shall  finally  decide  after  hearing  the  Consulting  Board  of  Eoads,  Canals, 
and  Ports. 

In  case  there  is  not  an  agreement  in  all  points  regarding  all  clauses 
and  conditions  between  the  Deputations  interested,  the  question  of 
granting  the  concession  shall  be  decided  in  the  same  manner.  The 
Deputation  in  all  other  matters  shall  follow  the  provisions  of  Articles 
99  and  100  of  these  Eegulations. 

ART.  108.  Concessions  of  tramways  made  by  Municipalities  by  vir- 
tue of  the  Law  of  Eailroads  and  of  the  corresponding  articles  of  these 
Eegulations  shall  be  subject,  in  so  far  as  applicable  and  not  in  contra- 
diction with  what  is  herein  provided,  to  the  provisions  of  Chapter  VII 
of  the  Eegulations  for  the  execution  of  the  General  Law  of  Public 
Works. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

GENERAL    CONDITIONS  WHICH    SHOULD   BE    OBSERVED   IN    THE 
CONSTRUCTION  AND   OPERATION  OF   TRAMWAYS. 

ART.  109.  The  Government,  hearing  the  Consulting  Board  of  Eoads, 
Canals,  and  Ports,  shall  draw  a  set  of  general  conditions,  which  shall 
be  observed  in  tramway  concessions,  complying  with  the  provisions 
prescribed  in  the  following  articles  of  the  present  Eegulations. 

ART.  110.  Every  concession  of  this  kind  shall  be  understood  to  be 
made  without  prejudice  to  third  persons,  and  protecting  private  rights 
according  to  the  provisions  of  Article  28  of  the  Eegulations  for  the 
execution  of  the  General  Law. 

ART.  111.  The  security  which  shall  be  required  from  the  owners  of 
concessions  shall  be  5  per  cent  of  the  value  of  the  estimated  cost  of  the 
approved  plan,  and  shall  not  be  returned  until  all  the  works  included 
in  the  concession  have  been  finished. 

ART.  112.  Tramways  must  always  be  established  in  such  manner  as 
not  to  cause  injury  nor  to  impede  the  travel  of  the  ordinary  vehicles 
which  pass  over  the  highroads  or  the  streets  which  they  occupy.  In 
consequence,  no  system  shall  be  admitted  in  which  the  rails  project 
above  the  level  of  the  road,  and  in  the  general  conditions  there  shall  be 
determined  the  minimum  width  of  the  streets  in  which  the  tramway  may 
be  constructed,  fixing  the  position  which  the  rails  must  occupy,  in  order 
that  the  tram  cars  may  cross  ordinary  vehicles  in  movement  and  those 
stopping  in  the  highway  or  in  the  street,  loading  and  unloading.  Thus, 
also,  proper  rules  shall  be  established  in  order  that  travelers  on  foot 
may  not  suffer  damages  or  inconveniences  in  the  road. 


52 

ART.  113.  That  part  of  the  highroad  or  street  occupied  by  a  tram- 
way, or  that  part  of  the  width  which  shall  be  determined,  shall  be  kept 
in  repair  at  the  expense  of  the  owner  of  the  concession,  who  for  this 
purpose  shall  renovate  and  replace  the  bed  and  the  pavement  with 
material  of  good  quality  whenever  this  may  be  necessary  in  the  judg- 
ment of  the  expert  agents  charged  with  the  inspection. 

In  the  construction  of  the  tramway,  and  in  the  preservation  and  repair, 
care  shall  be  taken  to  introduce  no  modification  whatsoever,  either  in 
the  grade  of  the  highroad  or  streets  or  in  the  transverse  profile  affected 
by  them. 

ART.  114.  When  the  tramway  is  to  be  of  a  single  track,  turnouts 
conveniently  situated  shall  be  built,  in  order  to  avoid  any  blockade. 

ART.  115.  The  works  must  be  carried  out  in  accordance  with  the 
approved  plan,  in  which  no  modification  whatsoever  may  be  introduced 
without  the  approval  of  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  or,  in  a  proper 
case,  of  the  Governor  of  the  Province. 

ART.  116.  No  tramway  shall  be  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  public 
until  after  inspection  by  the  Engineers  or  expert  agents  of  the  Depu- 
tations or  of  the  Municipal  Councils,  according  to  the  circumstances. 
These  officials  shall  report  the  result  of  their  inspections  to  the  Gov- 
ernor of  the  Province,  and  if  the  reports  should  be  favorable,  the 
Governor  shall  decide  that  the  tramway  be  open  to  the  public  service, 
reporting  to  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works  in  all  cases  in  which  the 
concession  may  have  been  granted  by  that  Department. 

.  ART.  117.  The  company  shall  operate  the  tramway  during  the  time 
stated  in  the  concession,  in  accordance  with  the  approved  schedule  of 
rates,  which  in  no  case  shall  be  higher  than  those  fixed  therein. 

The  owner  of  the  concession  shall  be  obliged  to  assure  the  travel  on 
his  road,  except  in  cases  of  force  inajeure.  If  the  travel  should  be 
interrupted  from  causes  imputable  to  the  owner  of  the  concession,  the 
Department  of  Public  Works,  or  the  Deputation,  or  the  Municipal 
Council  which  may  have  granted  the  concession,  shall  adopt  the  meas- 
ures conducive  to  its  reestablishment  at  the  expense  of  the  company. 

ART.  118.  The  company  may  freely  decide  on  the  means  of  construct- 
ing "the  road  as  well  as  on  the  selection  of  the  employees  appointed  for 
its  operation  and  administration.  In  the  same  manner  the  necessary 
rules  for  the  public  service  shall  be  drafted,  notifying  the  Department 
of  Public  Works  or  the  proper  authority  as  the  case  may  be. 

In  matters  relating  to  public  health  and  safety  the  company  shall  do 
what  is  demanded  by  the  Government  and  the  proper  authorities,  in 
conformity  with  the  General  Laws  and  Regulations  and  the  special 
police  laws  of  highroads  and  the  Municipal  ordinances  of  the  towns 
through  which  the  line  passes. 

ART.  119.  At  the  expiration  of  the  concession  the  company  shall 
turn  over  to  the  proper  party,  in  good  serviceable  condition,  the  tram- 
way, its  dependencies,  material,  and  means  of  traction,  and  the  Gov- 


53 

eminent,  Deputations,  or  Municipal  Councils,  to  whom  the  delivery  is 
made,  shall  enter  into  the  full  enjoyment  of  the  income  earned  by  the 
operation  of  the  tramway. 

ART.  120.  Besides  the  general  conditions  governing  the  concession 
of  all  tramways,  other  special  conditions  shall  be  stipulated  which 
shall  contain  the  provisions  relating  to  the  times  in  which  the  work 
should  begin  and  end ,  the  amount  of  the  security,  the  schedule  of  rates 
allowable  for  the  use  of  the  works,  duration  of  the  concession,  and 
cases  of  forfeiture  (if  any  special  ones  are  added  besides  those  pro- 
vided for  by  the  general  Law  of  Public  Works  and  by  the  Railroad 
Laws),  with  everything  else  deemed  convenient  for  the  good  construc- 
tion of  the  road  and  of  interest  for  the  public  service. 

ART.  121.  When  the  motive  power  employed  for  the  traction  is  other 
than  animal,  it  shall  be  stipulated  in  the  general  conditions  that  the 
engines,  should  they  be  run  by  steam,  shall  not  produce  smoke,  nor 
any  special  noise  which  might  frighten  the  horses  of  ordinary  vehicles; 
that  powerful  brakes  be  used  in  order  to  stop  the  train  in  the  shortest 
possible  time ;  that  the  speed  shall  not  exceed  20  kilometers  per  hour 
on  the  highroads,  and  that  it  shall  be  moderated  until  equal  to  that  of 
a  horse  at  a  walk  while  within  the  towns,  as  well  as  where  travel  may 
be  very  active;  that  the  best  system  of  signals  be  adopted;  and  that, 
in  short,  there  shall  be  observed  all  the  rules  and  precautions  possible, 
in  order  that  ordinary  traffic  may  be  carried  on  without  impediment 
and  without  danger,  as  well  as  to  avoid  accidents  of  any  kind. 

In  no  case  shall  the  change  of  animal  motive  power  established  in  a 
tramway  to  a  different  motive  power  be  authorized  without  previous 
permission  granted  by  the  Secretary  of  Public  Works,  in  accordance 
with  the  provisions  of  the  Law  in  every  respect  and  of  the  correspond- 
ing articles  of  these  Eegulations. 

Madrid,  May  24,  1878. 

Approved  by  His  Majesty. 

C.  TORENO. 


GENERAL  GOVERNMENT  OF  THE  ISLAND  OF  CUBA. 
PUBLIC  WORKS. 

The  Colonial  Department  communicates  to  His  Excellency  the  Gov- 
ernor-General, under  date  of  June  28  last,  the  following  Royal  Order : 

YOUR  EXCELLENCY  :  In  compliance  with  article  27  of  the  Budget  Law  for  this  Island, 
of  the  5th  of  this  month,  His  Majesty  the  King  (whom  God  Preserve)  has  deemed 
proper  to  approve  the  provisional  decree  for  the  concession  of  railroads  in  the  same, 
attached  hereto.  This  I  communicate  to  Your  Excellency  hy  Eoyal  Order  for  your 
information  and  consequent  effects. 

And  His  Excellency  having  ordered  its  compliance  on  the  28th  of  July 
last,  it  is  published  in  the  Gaceta  Oficial  for  general  information. 
Habaua,  August  10,  1880. 

JOAQUIN  CARBONELL, 
Secretary  of  the  General  Government. 


PROVISIONAL  DECREE  FOR   THE   CONCESSION   OF   RAILROADS   IN   THE 

ISLAND   OF   CUBA. 

ART.  1.  In  compliance  with  article  27  of  the  Budget  Law  for  the 
Island  of  Cuba  of  June  5, 1880,  the  Governor-General  shall  grant  the 
concession  for  the  construction  and  operation  of  the  railroad  lines  pre- 
ferred in  said  law  and  of  any  other  ones  granted  in  accordance  with  the 
same. 

ART.  2.  The  general  clauses,  guaranties,  subsidies,  and  franchises 
with  which  said  concessions  shall  be  granted  shall  be  those  stated  in 
said  law  and  in  the  General  Law  of  Railroads  and  Police  of  the  same, 
of  November  23,  1877,  and  their  respective  Eegulations  of  May  24, 
1878,  and  September  8,  of  the  same  year,  in  so  far  as  they  do  not  con- 
flict with  article  27  of  the  Budget  Law  of  Cuba  aforementioned. 

ART.  3.  The  concessions  of  all  the  lines  shall  be  granted  by  means 
of  an  auction  and  for  the  period  of  ninety-nine  years,  at  the  expiration 
of  which  they  shall  pass  to  the  ownership  of  the  State. 

The  auctions  for  the  lines  enjoying,  as  an  advance  to  be  refunded  dur- 
ing the  entire  period  of  the  concession,  an  annual  subsidy  for  every 
kilometer  in  operation,  shall  be  held  on  the  amount  assigned  to  each 
line  as  subsidy,  and  it  shall  not  exceed  in  any  case  f  700  for  each 
kilometer. 

54 


55 

For  the  lines  enjoying  a  guaranty  of  interest  on  the  principal  used 
in  the  construction,  said  interest  shall  be  8  per  cent  per  annum,  and 
the  auction  shall  be  held  on  the  capital  earning  it. 

For  the  lines  without  subsidy  or  guaranty  of  interest  on  the  capital 
invested,  the  auction  shall  be  held  on  the  limit  of  time  in  which  they 
are  to  be  constructed. 

ART.  4.  The  Inspection  of  Public  Works  of  Cuba  shall  draft,  within 
the  maximum  period  of  one  mouth,  the  plan  of  the  maximum  sched- 
ules to  be  applied  to  all  lines  which  may  hereafter  be  granted  in  the 
Island,  as  well  as  that  of  the  provisions  which  are  to  be  observed  in 
the  collection  of  the  amounts  of  these  schedules,  which  shall  also  be 
common  to  all  the  lines. 

This  plan  of  schedules  and  of  provisions  for  their  application  shall 
be  briefly  annotated  by  the  Consulting  Board  of  Public  Works  and 
afterwards  by  the  Council  of  Administration  of  the  Island,  and  the 
Governor-General  shall  approve  the  same,  with  the  modifications  which 
he  may  deem  proper. 

Subsequent  changes  shall  be  submitted  to  the  Government. 

ART.  5.  The  technical  conditions  of  the  plan  of  the  construction  of 
the  subsidized  lines  shall  be  determined  by  the  Inspection  of  Public 
Works.  In  consequence  thereof,  in  view  of  the  studies  already  made 
of  some  of  the  lines  and  of  the  date  which  can  be  procured  for  the 
rest,  it  shall  fix  the  time  table  for  each  one  of  them,  showing  the 
towns  and  principal  points  through  or  in  the  vicinity  of  which  the 
line  is  to  pass,  the  minimum  radius  of  the  curves,  the  maximum  grade 
of  the  levels,  the  class  of  the  principal  works  of  art  which  are  to  be  of 
a  permanent  character,  and  the  limits  of  time  to  be  granted  to  com- 
mence the  works,  and  to  place  each  section  of  the  line  in  operation. 
The  gauge  of  the  line  shall  be  the  standard  one  in  the  Railroads  of 
Cuba,  but  in  special  and  duly  authorized  cases  it  may  be  narrower.  In 
the  stations  and  switches  which  may  be  established  for  the  meeting  of 
trains,  there  shall  be  two  tracks  at  least. 

ART.  6.  The  Inspection  of  Public  Works  shall  also  propose  for  each 
Ikie  at  the  same  time  as  the  conditions  stated  in  the  preceding  article 
the  maximum  limit  of  the  subsidy  to  be  refunded  which  it  shall  enjoy 
during  the  period  of  the  concession  and  annually  for  each  kilometer  in 
operation,  if  this  plan  of  subsidy  is  adopted. 

In  case  the  annual  subsidy  is  preferred,  the  guaranty  of  interest  on 
the  capital  invested  in  the  construction,  the  Inspection  shall  determine 
the  maximum  capital  per  kilometer  which  is  to  be  recognized  as  having 
a  right  to  said  guaranty  and  the  cost  of  operation  which,  as  the  limit,  is 
to  be  recognized  to  the  concessionaire  in  order  to  estimate  the  profit  he 
may  make;  but  it  being  understood  that  if  the  real  expenses  of  the 
operation  are  less  than  the  maximum  cost  calculated,  the  former  shall 
be  the  ones  to  be  considered  in  order  to  determine  the  net  proceeds  of 
the  operation. 


56 

ART.  7.  The  lines  which  do  not  enjoy  a  subsidy  in  either  of  the  two 
manners  stated  are  not  subject  to  technical  conditions  of  drafting  and 
construction,  nor  to  the  maximum  schedules. 

ART.  8.  The  Inspection  of  Public  Works  shall  draft  the  conditions 
for  the  concession  of  subsidized  lines.  Those  for  lines  which  are  not 
subsidized  may  be  presented  by  the  companies  or  individuals. 

ART.  9.  After  the  conditions  of  a  line  are  drafted,  they  shall  be  sub- 
mitted for  the  report  of  the  Consulting  Board  of  Public  Works  and  by 
the  Council  of  Administration  of  the  Island,  and  the  Governor-Gen- 
eral may  approve  them,  notifying  the  Government  thereof  immediately. 

ART.  10.  After  the  conditions  of  construction  of  a  line  have  been 
approved  by  the  Governor-General  or  by  the  Government,  according 
to  the  cases,  the  public  auction  for  the  award  of  the  concession  shall  be 
advertised. 

ART.  11.  The  auctions  shall  be  held  at  Habana,  being  advertised  at 
least  three  months  beforehand.  In  order  to  take  part  therein  it  shall 
be  necessary  to  deposit  1  per  cent  of  the  capital  assigned  to  each  line 
for  the  guaranty  of  interest.  This  deposit  may  be  increased  to  3  per 
cent  of  the  said  capital  within  the  period  of  thirty  days  from  the  date 
on  which  the  award  is  announced  and  it  shall  serve  as  a  guaranty  for 
the  compliance  of  the  conditions  of  the  concession.  The  guaranty  shall 
be  returned  to  the  concessionaire  when  by  means  of  a  certificate  of  the 
Inspecting  Engineer  it  is  proven  that  an  amount  equal  to  double  the 
value  of  the  former  has  been  invested  in  works,  the  guaranty  being 
then  replaced  by  the  works  executed. 

ART.  12.  After  the  concession  of  a  line  has  been  awarded,  the  inspec- 
tion of  the  public  agents  shall  only  take  place  in  so  far  as  is  necessary 
to  secure  the  compliance  of  said  conditions  and  in  regard  to  the  public 
safety,  the  operation  being  permitted  when  the  line  or  its  sections  ful- 
fill their  conditions,  without  prejudice  to  said  works  being  terminated 
and  the  rolling  stock  completed  within  reasonable  limits  of  time. 

ART.  13.  The  Governor- General  shall  report  to  the  Government  all 
the  vicissitudes  and  progress  which  each  line  may  encounter. 

ART.  14.  The  Treasury  of  the  Island  shall  credit  to  the  concession- 
naire  of  the  lines  which  enjoy  an  annual  kilometric  subsidy  the  amount 
due  half  yearly  for  the  kilometers  operated,  the  earning  of  the  subsidy 
for  each  section  commencing  from  the  first  day  of  the  half  year  following 
the  opening  of  each  one.  From  this  amount  there  shall  be  deducted, 
in  accordance  with  law,  50  per  cent  of  the  gross  proceeds  earned  during 
the  half  year  by  the  section  operated,  and  the  difference  shall  be  the 
amount  paid  to  the  concessionnaire  of  each  line  as  refundable  subsidy. 

When,  during  four  consecutive  half  years,  50  per  cent  of  the  gross 
proceeds  of  a  line  exceeds  or  equals  the  subsidy,  the  concessionnaire 
shall  lose  all  his  right  to  a  further  subsidy,  but  the  Treasury  shall  con- 
tinue to  collect  the  excess  of  the  50  per  cent  over  the  amount  of  the 
subsidy  until  it  has  recovered  the  payments  which  it  may  have  made 


57     J:::V.      V:* 

for  this  purpose  in  previous  half  yea^/^itljCHU t-'niSi&i $g;  jiiiy  charges 
whatsoever  of  interest  for  the  advance. 

ART.  15.  For  lines  enjoying  a  guaranty  of  interest,  the  latter  shall 
be  applied  to  the  capital  or  to  the  cost  per  kilometer  obtained  at  the 
auction,  or  to  the  number  of  kilometers  operated  in  each  complete  half 
year.  From  the  amount  of  the  half-yearly  interest  thus  obtained  there 
shall  be  deducted  the  net  proceeds,  viz,  the  difference  between  the 
gross  proceeds  and  the  expense  of  operation,  determined  by  the  second 
paragraph  of  article  6  of  this  decree.  The  difference  between  the 
interest  for  the  half  year  and  the  net  proceeds  shall  be  what  the 
Treasury  of  the  Island  shall  pay  to  the  respective  concessionnaires. 

When  during  four  consecutive  half  years  the  net  proceeds  of  the  oper- 
ation of  a  line  computed  in  the  manner  above  mentioned  equal  or  exceed 
8  per  cent  per  annum  on  the  capital  which  is  to  earn  the  same,  the  right 
to  the  guaranty  of  interest  shall  cease  in  the  future 5  but  the  Treasury 
shall  continue  to  collect  50  per  cent  of  the  excess  over  the  said  8  per 
cent. 

ART.  16.  As  long  as  the  right  to  the  collection  of  the  subsidy  or  to 
the  guaranty  of  interest  exists  for  each  line,  the  public  administration 
shall  exercise  in  the  economic  management  of  the  enterprise  the  inter- 
vention necessary  to  ascertain  the  gross  proceeds  of  the  operation  as 
well  as  to  assure  itself  that  the  expenses  of  the  same  are  not  lower 
than  those  fixed  for  each  line.  There  shall  be  understood  by  operating 
expenses  only  those  caused  by  the  surveillance,  preservation  and  repair- 
ing of  the  line,  its  works,  buildings  and  material,  those  of  the  personnel 
and  rolling  stock,  operation,  workshops  and  warehouses,  those  of  the 
general  management  and  other  similar  ones;  but  by  no  means  the  inter- 
est and  amortization  of  loans,  the  increase  in  works  or  material,  and 
all  others  which  do  not  relate  to  the  operation  of  the  lines. 

ART.  17.  The  Government  shall  not  interfere  in  any  manner  whatso- 
ever in  the  management  of  lines  constructed  without  subsidy. 

Madrid,  June  28,  1880. 

Approved  by  His  Majesty : 

SANCHEZ  BUSTILLO. 

A  true  copy : 

CARBONELL. 

ADDITION. 

[Budget  Law  of  June  5,  1880. J 
PUBLIC   WORKS. 

ART.  27.  The  Government  shall  facilitate  the  construction  of  the 
Railroad  system  of  the  Island  of  Cuba,  preferring  the  following  lines: 

Santa  Clara  to  Sancti  Spiritus. 

Sancti  Spiritus  to  San  Luis  de  la  Euramada,  via  Ciego  de  Avila, 
Puerto  Principe,  Victoria  de  las  Tunas,  Cauto  Embarcadero,  Bayamo, 
and  Jiguani. 

2512 5 


58 

Victoria  ife  las  >>imu  to  ^a:<  Luis  de  la  Enramada,  via  Holguin. 

Bayamo  to  Mauzauillo. 

Puerto  Principe  to  Santa  Cruz  del  Sur. 

San  Miguel  de  Nuevitas  to  Zanja. 

Holguin  to  Gibara. 

Canoa  to  the  Bay  of  Nipe. 

El  Cristo  to  Guaso. 

Santa  Catalina  de  Guaso  to  Sagua  de  Tanamo. 

The  concessions  for  the  different  sections  of  these  lines  must  be 
awarded  at  a  public  auction,  the  basis  therefor  being  the  subsidy  or 
the  capital  to  be  guaranteed  by  the  State,  according  to  the  case,  and 
by  means  of  a  bond,  granting  as  a  subsidy— 

1.  Exemption  from  import  duties  on  the  necessary  material. 

2.  An  annual  payment  of  an  amount  not  to  exceed  $2,700  per  kilo- 
meter operated,  by  way  of  an  advance,  refundable  with  one-half  of  the 
gross  proceeds  of  the  operation  or  with  a  guaranty  of  interest  on  all  or 
on  a  part  of  the  capital  invested  in  the  line,  sharing  half  of  the  divi- 
dends in  the  latter  case,  when  the  shareholders  earn  more  than  8  per 
cent  interest. 

3.  The  gratuitous  cession  to  the  enterprises  of  lands  owned  by  the 
State  or  towns  which  may  be  necessary  for  the  construction  and  opera- 
tion of  the  lines. 

4.  The  right  of  condemnation  by  way  of  public  utility  and  after 
indemnification  for  the  private  property  indispensable  for  the  construc- 
tion and  operation. 

These  concessions  shall  enjoy  the  franchises  mentioned  in  Article  4 
of  the  General  Eailroad  Law  of  November  23,  1877. 

The  Government  is  hereby  authorized  to  grant  these  concessions 
without  requiring  a  plan  previously  approved,  but  subject  to  deter- 
mined technical  conditions  of  draft  and  construction  and  to  a  fixed 
itinerary ;  the  two  General  Laws  of  November  23, 1877,  and  their  corre- 
sponding Eegulations  being  understood  as  applicable  in  so  far  as  they 
do  not  conflict  with  the  foregoing  prescriptions. 

Lines  may  be  granted  without  the  subsidy  referred  to  in  the  second 
case  of  the  second  paragraph,  and  these  lines  shall  enjoy  the  other 
franchises  and  rights  mentioned  in  this  Law.  They  shall  also  be 
awarded  at  a  public  auction,  giving  a  bond,  and  the  time  within  which 
the  work  is  to  be  constructed  shall  be  the  basis  for  the  bid,  being 
awarded  to  the  Company  offering  to  do  the  work  in  the  shortest  time. 

(Gaceta,  July  1,  1880.) 


YC  bV/4 


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